RHINELANDER - If you haven't already checked all the items off your Christmas shopping list, you should be careful when buying toys for kids.
Buying age-appropriate toys for young ones could mean the difference between life and death when they go to play with their new gift.
Public Health Nurse Dawn Van Den Heuvel says, "Make sure that there are no small parts to it. Even like stuffed animals, its better if the eyes are sewn on and the nose and the mouth. As opposed to buttons or anything hard that could come off and get in the baby's mouth and lodged in the baby's mouth."
Read the labels carefully because tags list age suggestions and safety standards designed to keep your kids safe.
Van Den Heuvel says, safety doesn't end under the tree though..."It's good to have ornaments and lights and stuff up higher if you've got little tiny ones that crawl and might get over by the tree. Tie the tree down so that it doesn't get pulled over and land on somebody."
Also, watch out for hard candy and other holiday treats posing a choking hazard for children.
And even if it's on little Johnny's Christmas wish list, nurses do not advise buying your kids a BB-gun this holiday season.
RHINELANDER - Rhinelander kindergartener Carlie Jahn watched her dad leave for his third overseas tour of duty last fall.
Usually, she gets to see him for two-weeks during his nine-month tour. But there was no leave for Guardsmen Justin Jahn this year. He will be in Afghanistan until July.
Instead of too much sadness, Carlie's mom is helping her by sharing at school.
"Once that time came through, it was hard for her to understand why he wasn't coming home. I thought this would be a fun way to have her realize that she's not the only one, that there's others out there," says Amanda Jahn.
Jahn talked with grade schoolers at Crescent Elementary today about living with a family member in the military.
Students also recognized veterans and active soldiers related to them.
Eight Years Prison Time for Sexually Assaulting a Child
Submitted: 05/24/2013
RHINELANDER - A man from Rhinelander will spend the next eight years in prison for sexually assaulting a very young child.
The details of the case are so graphic and so disturbing, we can't put them on television.
What we can show you is edited to protect the victim's identity.
Forty five-year-old Jack Kaufman faced up to 40 years in prison. He insisted to the very end, that what he did was an accident, not sexual assault.
Prosecutors said today Kaufman gave so many versions of the story, they couldn't keep track of them all. One version was that the child walked in on him while masturbating. Then he said he accidentally ejaculated on the child. Although in some interviews, he said it was on purpose.
But the child described a full sexual assault to police, and said it happened, "lots of times".
"Mr. Kaufman provided many versions of his assault of (the victim). When confronted with the overwhelming discrepancies he said (the victim) was telling the truth. But at no time did he say he was sorry. He did say he wished his family wouldn't have reported," says Scott Moller, Oneida County Assistant District Attorney.
Kaufman told investigators he had no interest in sexual activity with anyone, child or adult. Judge Michael Bloom didn't accept that.
"That did not stop him from taking advantage of the presence of a warm, living, breathing person who happened to be nearby when he was engaged in this activity," says Judge Bloom.
Judge Bloom sentenced Kaufman to 14 years prison. He'll spend the first eight behind bars, and the remaining six on extended supervision.
LAC DU FLAMBEAU - The back-and-forth between state lawmakers and the Lac du Flambeau tribe might be over.
Dean Kaufert is a Republican representing Neenah. He wanted to strip a quarter-million dollars of funding from the tribe. That money would have gone to fund a new cultural center.
His original move was a protest against the Chippewa lowering walleye bag limits. That happened on many lakes in the ceded territory this spring.
"I was kind of having some difficulty with some of my colleagues in the Legislature with convincing them that we needed to play hardball by holding this project back," says Rep. Kaufert.
Walleye spearing season by Chippewa fishermen is almost over. They only took about half as many as they expected. So, the DNR raised limits on 423 lakes in the ceded territory.
Kaufert now will not stand in the way of the cultural center money.
"The Governor asked me if I would consider releasing that project due to their ongoing discussions about trying to create a better environment up north for fish stocking and number of walleyes in our lakes," says Rep. Kaufert.
This week, Governor Scott Walker also proposed a state project to put more walleye in Wisconsin's lakes.
ANTIGO - Despite having to poke her fingers, and inject insulin throughout the day, 7 year old Meredith smiles all the time. Now YOU can make her smile even brighter.
This is the race car Meredith Meidl designed for Ford's "Real Heroes Contest" benefitting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund. Meredith knows a lot about diabetes. She's had the disease since she was 2.
"I just (clicks) and then I push it on my finger and I squeeze my finger and then I put my blood into the strip and it reads my blood," said Meredith demonstrating how she tests her blood sugar.
Disclaimer: All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed and should be independently verified. Neither Rockfleet Broadcasting / Northland Television, Inc. nor By Request Web Designs shall be responsible for any typographical errors, misinformation, or misprints.
Play Video
