STATEWIDE - More than 500 people died on Wisconsin roadways last year. Plenty of things factor in, but many of those could have been prevented by not drinking and driving.
The DOT hopes its new smartphone app will help.
You might have seen these commercials recently on our station. They promote the new "Drive Sober" App.
It can use your phone's GPS to find the nearest safe ride. It also has a Blood Alcohol Content estimator and designated driver selection tool.
Oneida County Sheriff's Lieutenant Lloyd Gauthier knows not all car crash deaths are caused by drunk drivers.
But he thinks tools like this one definitely help.
"Some of that's due to intoxication, OWI, seatbelts, speed, so the more inforcement that we do and just educating the public that we certainly don't want to deter people from having a good time, but we want them to do it safely and responsibly," Gauthier said.
The DOT stresses the BAC tool isn't exact. It's meant to give you basic guidance.
The app is free in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
RHINELANDER - You might remember the name Shannon Wolf. He chased his wife down, stabbed and choked her by the Hodag statue in Rhinelander last February. He'll now spend the next twelve years in prison.
Today Latoya Wolf testified she was partly to blame for what happened. She told the court Shannon Wolf was trying to cut his own wrists. But she got in the way and was cut in the struggle for the knife.
Prosecutors said the violent encounter and the victim's backtracking was a classic example of the domestic abuse cycle.
"I believe that there are significant pressures on Mrs. Wolf," says Assistant District Attorney Scott Moller.
Moller presented Wolf's extensive criminal history. He said there's also a documented history of domestic abuse.
Moller asked Judge Patrick O'Melia to sentence Wolf to 30 years.
Judge O'Melia said he believes this case is one of classic domestic abuse.
He sentenced Wolf to 24 years. He'll spend 12 in prison and 12 years extended supervision.
Wolf is not allowed to have any contact with his wife. He's also not eligible for early release or boot camp.
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.
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.
RHINELANDER - You don't need to get a library card to check out a book theses days. Boxes that look like bird houses are popping up all over.
They're called Little Free Libraries. Anyone can stop by to take or give a book. It's all based on the honor system. Maureen O'Melia put her's up at home last night across from Pioneer Park.
"I contacted Ed Hughes from the library. He was excited about the idea as well and he, a week later, says I built you one Maureen. But I had to stain it and get it ready for the outdoors," says Maureen O'Melia, who built a Little Free Library.
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