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Hartford Jt. 1
considers referendum
4:49 p.m.
HARTFORD - Voters this fall could decide whether a
two-story addition to Central Middle School, to house the Hartford
Jt. 1 School District’s fifth-grade students, is the solution to
overcrowding at the city’s two elementary schools.
Hearing delayed on
Jackson’s kids at mom’s request
4:27 p.m.
LOS
ANGELES - A judge has delayed a guardianship hearing for Michael
Jackson’s children at the request of attorneys for the singer’s
mother and his ex-wife, Deborah Rowe.
The hearing had been scheduled for Monday. Records
show attorneys for Jackson’s mother, Katherine Jackson, and Rowe
asked for the hearing to be delayed until July 13.
A judge granted that request today.
KNBC in Los Angeles reported earlier that Debbie
Rowe intends to seek custody of Jackson’s two oldest children and
will seek a restraining order to keep Jackson’s father Joe away from
the children.
Katherine Jackson will retain temporary guardianship
of the children until then.
U.S. soldier
captured by Taliban may have left base alone
4:24 p.m.
KABUL
- A U.S. soldier who inexplicably walked off his barren military
base earlier this week was captured by Taliban militants hours
later, U.S. military officials said today. It’s believed to be the
first time insurgents here have captured a U.S. serviceman in the
almost-eight-year war.
The private first class, who was based in Paktika
province in eastern Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, didn’t
show up for formation on Tuesday. When fellow soldiers went to his
quarters, they found his weapon, but his journal was missing,
officials in Kabul told McClatchy Newspapers. Hours later, U.S.
military officials received a phone call saying that the soldier had
been kidnapped outside the base, a senior military official said.
It’s not clear whether any demands were made.
Soldiers at the base think the soldier may have
walked off the base, though a senior military officer told McClatchy
Newspapers that no one saw him leave.
Officials said they knew of no reason a soldier
based in eastern Afghanistan would leave his base alone, especially
with no one knowing in advance. Troops generally leave the base in
groups and with the knowledge of their commanders.
‘‘We’re incredulous,’’ a senior military officer
said.
OAS chief says
sanctions likely in Honduras
2:40 p.m.
TEGUCIGALPA,
Honduras (AP) - A top diplomat said today he is heading to Honduras
to demand the return of the president toppled at gunpoint - a
mission he said is likely to meet rejection, bringing diplomatic and
economic punishment for the impoverished Central American nation.
The head of the Organization of American States,
Jose Miguel Insulza, said he plans to travel to Honduras on Friday
to insist on restoration of President Manuel Zelaya, who was ousted
in a coup on Sunday.
‘‘I will do everything I can. But I think it will be
very hard to turn things around in a couple of days,’’ Insulza said
at a summit of Caribbean leaders in Georgetown, Guyana. ‘‘We are not
going to Honduras to negotiate. We are going to Honduras to ask them
to change what they have been doing.’’
The OAS says it will suspend Honduras if Zelaya
isn’t back in office by Saturday. Interim President Roberto
Micheletti says he will not back down under international pressure,
arguing that Zelaya was legally removed on orders from the nation’s
Supreme Court.
Insulza said the sanctions that could be imposed
over the weekend could block international aid.
Stancl seeks lower
bail
2:39 p.m.
WAUKESHA - A former New Berlin Eisenhower High School
student accused of backmailing male students into performing sexual
acts is seeking a significant reduction in his bail.
For more on this story, pick up a copy of Friday’s
Freeman.
Some fireworks retailers feeling pinch of economy
10:56 a.m.
WAUSAU
(AP) - Some fireworks retailers in central Wisconsin say the sour
economy is affecting their sales heading into the Fourth of July
weekend.
Jerry Bamke of Fireworks Country in Wittenberg says
customers are spending less this year and commenting that they have
to cut back.
Derrick Sukow of Fireworks Depot near Merrill says
traffic and sales are down from a year ago. He says people who are
buying are settling for some of the cheaper fireworks, not the top
quality ones.
Gloria Jaegler of Old Glory Fireworks in Merrill
says she has noticed more comparison shopping as people for look for
the best deals because of the economy.
Sign-up for disabled
hunt begins
10:55 a.m.
MADISON
(AP) - Disabled hunters can start signing up for Wisconsin’s annual
disabled deer hunt.
The 20th annual hunt will run from Oct. 3-11 this
fall. Disabled hunters can get special permits by completing an
application with their doctor and submitting it to the state
Department of Natural Resources.
The applications are available on the DNR’s Web
site. Review of applications can take up to two months.
Private individuals and organizations sponsor the
hunts, which take place almost entirely on private land. Once a
permit is in hand, hunters should contact landowners to make
arrangements. A list is available on the DNR’s Disabled Deer Hunting
Web page.
Last year more than 100 sponsors opened more than
62,000 acres to disabled hunters.
Pierce Manufacturing
gets $10M Navy contract
10:53 a.m.
APPLETON (AP) - Two days after Oshkosh Corp. scored a
billion-dollar defense contract, one of its subsidiaries has landed
its own $10 million military contract.
Pierce Manufacturing of Appleton said today the U.S.
Navy has ordered 29 special fire trucks. That follows a separate
order for two Pierce hazardous-material vehicles. The total contract
is worth $10.3 million.
The fire trucks are equipped with remote-controlled
nozzles, foam systems and 750-gallon tanks.
Pierce makes a range of fire trucks, from those used
in large cities to others suited for fighting fires in forests and
other rough terrain.
The contract follows a Pentagon contract awarded to
parent company Oshkosh on Tuesday for more than 2,200 mine-resistant
all-terrain trucks.
UW unions draw few
concerns
8:47 a.m.
WAUKESHA - The approval of the 2009-11 biennial
budget by Gov. Jim Doyle this week has not only ushered in a new era
in Wisconsin government, but is changing the way the University of
Wisconsin System operates.
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Waukesha debuts
Twitter-life emergency alerts
8:46 a.m.
WAUKESHA - To help keep residents safe and aware, the
Waukesha Police Department is implementing a new emergency alert
system that Capt. Mark Stigler described as “kind of like a Twitter
system on steroids.”
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Ruggeri out as owner
of The Clarke Hotel
8:45 a.m.
WAUKESHA - In a move that surprised prominent
Waukesha leaders and business owners, Andy Ruggeri stepped down
effective Wednesday as owner and general manager of The Clarke Hotel
and The Black Trumpet Restaurant in downtown.
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Parade to feature
America through the years
8:44 a.m.
WAUKESHA - This year’s Waukesha Independence Day
Parade is another chance for people to appreciate the origins and
future of the United States, as its theme is “Celebrating America’s
Past, Present and Future.”
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Sex offender released
to Waukesha residence
8:41 a.m.
WAUKESHA - A 42-year-old registered sex offender is
moving to East Moreland Boulevard in Waukesha.
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Waukesha School
District’s superintendent reflects on his first year at the helm
8:39 a.m.
WAUKESHA - In his first year on the job, Waukesha
Superintendent Todd Gray has changed the face of the Waukesha School
District.
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Briggs & Stratton
closing Jefferson plant
8:38 a.m.
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Briggs & Stratton will eliminate 430
jobs and close its Jefferson facility that makes pressure washers
and portable generators by mid next year.
Ninety to 100 additional employees, who are salaried,
will be offered relocation packages.
Roundy’s recalls JBS
Swift beef
8:36 a.m.
MILWAUKEE (AP) - Roundy’s Supermarkets Inc. is
recalling some of its beef because of possible E. coli
contamination.
Roundy’s says beef currently in its Pick ‘n Save,
Copps, Rainbow and Metro Market stores is safe. But, ground beef and
other beef products purchased between April 25 and May 30 is subject
to recall.
The beef in question is from JBS Swift Beef Co. of
Greeley, Colo. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said an
investigation by its Food Safety and Inspection Service of 24
illnesses in multiple states prompted Swift to re-examine its food
safety system, leading to the recall.
Roundy’s says customers who have the recalled beef in
their freezers can return it for an exchange or refund.
Waukesha Civic Band
offers lively performances
8:33 a.m.
WAUKESHA - The Waukesha Civic Band is continuing with
its music lineup for the rest of the summer, including a patriotic
performance tonight.
For more coverage of this story, please pick up a
copy of today’s Freeman.
Major military
operation under way in Afghanistan
8:32 a.m.
NAWA, Afghanistan (AP) - Thousands of U.S. Marines
and hundreds of Afghan troops poured into Taliban-infested villages
of southern Afghanistan with armor and helicopters today in the
first major operation under President Barack Obama’s strategy to
stabilize the country.
The offensive in the once-forgotten war was launched
shortly after 1 a.m. today local time in Helmand province, a Taliban
stronghold and the world’s largest opium poppy producing area. The
goal is to clear insurgents from the hotly contested region before
the nation’s Aug. 20 presidential election.
Officials described the operation, dubbed Khanjar, or
‘‘Strike of the Sword,’’ as the largest and fastest-moving of the
war’s new phase, involving nearly 4,000 of the newly arrived Marines
and 650 Afghan forces. British forces last week led similar, but
smaller, missions to clear out insurgents in Helmand and neighboring
Kandahar provinces.
‘‘Where we go we will stay, and where we stay, we
will hold, build and work toward transition of all security
responsibilities to Afghan forces,’’ Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Larry
Nicholson said in a statement.
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