5-3-13 fdl county sheriff's office law of the month

U-turns on freeway crossovers are dangerous and illegal.  If you miss your exit or need to change direction on an interstate highway or other freeway, you might be tempted to make a U-turn at a median crossover that connects with the opposite lanes. It’s a temptation you must resist. The signs warning that U-turns at freeway crossovers are illegal should be your first clue that the maneuver is not only against the law—it’s dangerous too.  If you slow down to make an illegal U-turn at a crossover, other drivers travelling behind at highway speeds may not be able to slow down and react in time. And when you attempt to merge back into traffic lanes from the crossover, your vehicle will be re-entering at less than highway speeds and in the path of oncoming drivers when they least expect it.  Instead of making an illegal and dangerous U-turn, you should proceed to the next freeway exit and then use the overpass to get to the on-ramp on the opposite side. It’s well worth the extra time and distance.  By law, crossovers may only be used by law enforcement and other authorized vehicles. Drivers of these specially equipped vehicles are well trained and extremely cautious about using freeway crossovers. For all other drivers, a violation for illegally crossing a divided highway (Wis. Stats. 346.33) in Wisconsin costs $263.50.

Sheriff Mick Fink

5-3-13 may snowstorm

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Schoolchildren in Minnesota and Wisconsin are getting a rare May snow day after a storm dropped up to 16 inches of sticky snow on the Upper Midwest.  Bobbi Howe's two daughters had to stay home in the southeastern Minnesota city of Owatonna,  where 15.5 inches of snow made it hard for the family to open their front door. Owatonna was one of dozens of school districts in Minnesota and Wisconsin that canceled classes.  The Twin Cities were supposed to be in the bulls-eye but escaped unscathed when the storm tracked farther east than forecast.  But more than 16 inches of snow fell on Ashland in far northwestern Wisconsin. The Wisconsin State Patrol says that was a factor in a fatal crash between two semis on Interstate 94 near Menomonie.

5-2-13 disalvo leaving marian university

Fond du lac’s Marian University president Steven DiSalvo is leaving for the east coast.  DiSalvo has accepted a job as president of St. Anselm College in New Hampshire.  DiSalvo will be leaving Marian at the end of the month.  A Marian Unviersity press release says a national search will begin to find
a replacement and could take up to a year.  DiSalvo was hired by Marian University  in June 2010.

5-2-13 multiple vehicle accident

Turns out nobody was seriously injured in a five vehicle chain-reaction accident in Fond du lac. Rescue personnel were called to the scene at Hickory Street and Military Road shortly after 5pm Wednesday.  Assistant police chief Steve Klein says no one was transported to the hospital.

5-2-13 drug drop a success

Fond du Lac County residents turned in more than a thousand pounds of  expired or no longer needed medications during last weekend’s annual Drug Drop event.  The Drug Drop was held at five Fond du lac County locations and the medications collected were turned over to the federal Drug Enforcement Agency for destruction.  Karen Rucks with the Drug Free Communities says thousands of pounds of prescription medications have been collected over the years. If you missed the event there is a 24/7 permanent, anonymous drug drop located in the Fond du Lac Police Department parking lot on North Main Street.

5-2-13 donor disclosures

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Two state senators have re-introduced a bill that would require special interest groups who put out campaign issue ads to report their donors and spending.  Wisconsin law generally requires organizations that spend to influence an election to file financial reports. Many groups can get around that requirement, though, by running ads that don't explicitly tell voters to vote for or against a specific candidate, instead imploring viewers to contact a candidate and complain about his or her policies.

Under the bill, groups that distribute ads that clearly identify a candidate within 60 days of an election would be required to file financial reports with the state.  The bill's chief sponsors, Sens. Mike Ellis and Jon Erpenbach have been trying to pass issue ad disclosure requirements for years.

5-2-13 venture capital plan

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Business owners and leaders are speaking out for a proposal to pour more money into Wisconsin's startup businesses. The legislation would put $25 million into a fund that invests in agriculture, technology, energy and other industries. The fund also would get at least $50 million from private sources.