On Market Street: A fight or not? A gun or not?
WINONA, Minn. – Police responded to a midnight call about a man in a black sweatshirt waving a gun around inside the crowded Market Street Tap, but the place was copasetic albeit lively when officers arrived. There were no signs of the fight reported in the 911 call. Meanwhile, another officer on patrol spotted a man in a black sweatshirt jogging down a nearby alley. The man admitted to be carrying a gun in his waistband but said hadn’t brandished it in the bar. Also, he said, the weapon was registered and legal. At the bar: Officers were trying to find out what happened:“Describe the gun, please.” Some said it was black. Some said silver. Some claimed never to have seen a gun. “What about a fight”? Bartenders and the bouncer said they saw nothing. First thing the next morning, police put an investigator on the case. The bar had no security cameras inside or out.
Busy place. Just off Third Street at east end of downtown bar district.
Notable journalism
Rachel Mergen (Winona Daily News, April 5, 2024): “Ashley Furniture Founder Ron Wanek First Wisconsin Manufacturing Hall of Fame Inductee in 50 Years”
Chris Rogers (Winona Post, April 3, 2024): “Winona County Wants to Trim Police Station Features”
Steve Rundio (LaCrosse Tribune, April 11, 224): “Barge Impact Wouldn’t Take Down Mississippi River Bridges”
Greeters welcome for cruise boats: No boarding
WINONA, Minn. – The 2024 river cruise schedule at the Winona Levee, the leanest in decades, has only 10 visits. Locals are welcome to greet tourists, but, alas, no onboard visits allowed. The schedule:
> June 19 (Wednesday): American Melody, 1:30 p.m. docking and overnight.
> July 7 (Sunday): American Serenade, 1:30 p.m. and overnight
> July 22 (Monday): American Serenade, 1 p.m.
> August 1 (Thursday): American Melody, 1 p.m.
> August 5 (Monday): American Serenade, 1 p.m.
> August 19 (Monday): American Serenade, 1 p.m.
>September 2 (Monday): American Serenade. 1 p.m.
> September 16 (Monday): American Serenade, 1 p.m.
> September 18 (Wednesday): American Symphony, 1 p.m. and overnight.
> October 3 (Thursday): American Symphony, 1 p.m.
Earlier: 2024 Winona cruise dockings: Merely 10
Would-be pizza customer absconds with tip jar
WINONA, Minn. – A Winona man, Dakota Todd brown, was displeased when told to leave the Topper’s pizza joint on Third Street. He picked up the tip jar and walked out, a clerk told polic. Offices recovered the jar and arrested Brown. At Topper’s request, police issued a don’t-come-back citation. This was a little after 12 a.m.
Driver not drunk? Then why his impaired signs?
WINONA, Minn. – A deputy stopped a Lewiston man for speeding, 51 mph in a 40 zone, then realized the issue was more than speed. The man’s responses to questions were slow and delayed, the deputy said. The man smelled of alcohol. His eyes were bloodshot, his speech slurred. He was unsteady. A field breathalyzer test showed 0.04% alcohol – only half the threshold for legal impairment. Tyler Carleton Tayne, 20, was taken to jail for testing on a device with greater capabilities than field breathalyzers. The new sample was sent to the state crime lab for testing, which will determine whether a controlled-substance charge is warranted. The stop was about 11:20 p.m. on Riverview Drive.
College scores
Tennis (men): Macalester 9, Saint Mary’s 0
GOP joy short-lived over stalled construction
State Office Building. When remodeled and doubled in size,, the building will house offices for state representatives, for the secretary of state, and for a few small agencies. Construction has begun.
Opponents: State Office Building re-do a Taj Mahal
ST. PAUL, Minn. — As word spread that foundation digging for a heavily remodeled State Office Building had stopped, the Capitol grapevine swelled with possibilities: Something prehistoric? An ancient runestone memorial? A sacred Native American burial site? Republicans, who have opposed the $500 million project as wasteful and lavish, were especially excited. Perhaps their plotting for legislative tactics to derail the project would prove unnecessary. Alas, Curtis Yoaku of the state Administration Department dampened the Republican exuberance. Construction crews, he explained, had found what turned out to be a tiny neighborhood garbage dump from the early 1900s – in the days predating motorized trash pickup. Excavation would resume shortly, he said.
In the street car era. This 1901 St. Paul intersection now is site for a new State Office Building to house offices for members of the State House of Representatives. The Senate already has its stand-alone building in the crowded Capitol complex. Image: Minnesota Historical Society
Highway engineer: Mississippi bridges barge-proof
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Bridges that connect Minnesota and Wisconsin across the Mississippi could withstand a direct collision from a barge, according to Minnesota’s chief bridge engineer. Ed Lutgen told the LaCrosse Tribune that piers are evaluated regularly to meet 1991 federal standards to withstand “a commercial vessel impact.” Lutgen was interviewed in the wake of the Baltimore disaster in March, when an ocean-going container ship brought down the Interstate 695 bridge over outer harbor. The had been designed in the 1970s. About bridges in general, Lutgen acknowledged “a lot of unknowns” when assessing the impact of a possible barge collision. But, he added, the Highway 43 in Winona and the Interstate 90 and bridges at Dresbach are up-to-standard, as are other border bridges: “Those designs account for site-specific conditions — including the geometry of the vessels, the speed, the weights, the river currents and the flood conditions– so it has been designed for those types of barges.”
Earlier: Periodic Minnesota bridge inspections due soon
State of bridges
Minnesota has 54 bridges that cross navigable waters as defined by the U.S. Coast Guard. The Army Corps of Engineers, which manages river traffic, has average of 2,200 commercial vessels annually pass through Lock and Dam 7 at Dresbach. A single barge can carry 1,500 tons of cargo. Bridge safety assessments and maintenance are the resosnbiityof state agencies. Examples:
> Iowa: Black Hawk Bridge at Lansing.
> Minnesota: Intestate 90 bridge at Dresbach, Highway43 bridge at Winona, and Clickner Bridge at Wabasha.
> Wisconsin Cass Strest Bridge in La LaCrosse.
Police quandary: He said, she said, she said
WINONA, Minn. – A police investigator has been assigned to sort out a man’s report that he was assaulted by a girlfriend of his ex-girlfriend. “What assault?” the women told the responding officer. They denied getting physical. The man had called police about 3:30 p.m. The man said he had gone to his ex-girlfriend’s apartment on the 700 block of Jimmy Carter Place on the Far West End to drop something off. There, he said, as he approached his ex-girlfriend, her friend — another woman — grabbed his neck and pushed him against bis car. The two women recounted the incident differently. They said the man was the aggressor. One question for the continuing investigation is whether any surveillance or doorbell cameras caught what really happened.
Homeless man accused of abusing friendly gesture
WINONA, Minn. – A homeless man who took up a stranger’s offer to bunk temporarily in his house stole the Good Samaritan’s car keys, his car and his wallet, according to a police report. Sieven hours ours later, the homeless man was arrested back at the Samaritan’s house – while the Samaritan was still out scouring the neighborhood for the missing car. The homeless man locked the door and wouldn’t come out. Police broke the door down. Officers arrested Jeremy Eugene Ealy, 40, who was homeless with no address. He didn’t resist. Loads of charges were posted at jail:
> Auto theft.
> Drunken driving.
> Trespass.
> Theft.
> Being a fugitive from another state.
A goodwill gesture
This is the Samaritan’s account to police of what happened: Jeremy Ealy had been hanging around the 850 block of West Fifth Street off and on. After a while, the Samaritan struck up a conversation. Ealy said he was homeless. The homeowner offered to let him sleep on his couch until he could get his affairs on order. On Thursday about 3 p.m. Ealy told the homeowner he was going to Kwik Trip. The owner assumed that Ealy was walking over to the store, a few houses down the block. Three hours the homeowner realized that his car keys were missing – and so too his car. He called police and also his credit-card company. Yes, there had been a $100 charge at a Goodview tavern. The homeowner began canvassing the neighborhood for his car. He also kept trying to call and text Ealy but without response.
The arrest
Meanwhile, Ealy returned from his joy-ride and let himself in. Yes, he had not only the homeowner’s car keys but also the house keys. Police arrived. The house was locked. And Ealy, inside, was not answering. Then the owner showed up and authorized police to break down the front door. Ealy was arrested without resistance. This was about 9:50 p.m.
Ealy. Homeless. Charged with exploiting a West End home-owner’s helping hand.
Verdict: Guilty in bloody Apple River chaos
HUDSON, Wis. – A jury found a Minnesota man guilty of reckless homicide in a 2022 Apple River tubing confrontation in which a teenager was stabbed fatally. Nicolae Miu, 54, also was also convicted of attacking four other tubers. The primary charge originally was intentional homicide, but the jury the jury chose less-severe reckless homicide. Courtroom servers said a pivital moment came in the trial when one tuber, Alexander Martin, opened his shirt to show a near two-foot scar. Said Martin: “My stomach was open and my intestines were in my hands.” Martin said he remembered telling a friend was going to die. He then remembers waking up in a hospital. He was in the hospital 27 days and had a few follow-up surgeries. Complications required a feeding tube. Other victims also stood in the witness box aad showed scars. In his defnse, Miu, of Prior Lake, Minnesota, said he had been wadig in search bof a lost phone when he was set upon by a group of young tubers. Killed in the confrontation was Isaac Schuman, 17, of Stillwater.
Twenty months later. Martin’s lifetime reminder of the day he was sure he would die.
Senate unanimous to tighten rail safety
ST. PAUL, Minn. – In rare unanimity the Minnesota Senate passed a massive 86-secion transportation bill with new requirements for railroad safety. These include a 1-1/2 mile cap on train length – about half as long as some railroads are putting on their mainlines.There also are technical dates, among them: Train crews need to notify fire departments immediately through 911, not fire chiefs, when an incident or derailment involves a release of oil or other hazardous materials. The goal: Shortening the window between the incident and response. The bill also tightens requirements for wayside devices to detect overheated n on freight car wheels. Also in the bill are more or lees routine updates driver licensing and regulations regarding automobiles, bicycles and motorcycles.
Earlier: House favors clipping safety video for older drivers
Uber and Lyft
Missing from the Senate’s omnibus transportation bill was a proposal to bat local governments from regulating transportation companies such as Uber and Lyft. The proposal, from Senator Zach Duckworth, R-Minneapolis, was aimed at Minneapolis regulations on freelance taxi services. Senate President Bobby Jo Champion, D-Minneapolis, ruled Duckworth’s amendment as outside the scope of the transportation bill.
The road ahead
The House version of Omnibus Transportation legislation was passed last week. The two versions have inconsistencies and in some cases deal with issues. A joit Senate-House committee will be asked to create a single bill for reconsideration in both house.;
2024 Winona cruise dockings: Merely 10
American Serenade. This four-deck American Cruise Line boat is in a recently built fleet of smaller vessels for river tourism.
Post-bankruptcy: Can more boats be floated soon?
WINONA, Minn. – Amid turmoil in the Mississippi River cruise industry and the bankuptcy of a major cruise line, only three boats have been committed to Winona visits this summer – compared to the usual 20 to 30. The three boats signed up for Winona dockings are operated by American Cruise Lines. Each will make multiple stops goig uprive and downrjver. If every passenger every docking debarks, the Winona tourism industry will have roughy 1,800 visitors this summer – a mere fraction of thousands of passengers in recent tourist seasons. The 2024 line-up:
> American Melody (175 guests), built 2021.
> American Serenede (180 guests), 2023.
> American Symphony (180 guests), 2022.
None are traditional paddle-wheelers, and none as mammoth as the largest ever built — 436-passengers. Unknown is whether American Cruise Line can have any of the boats it acquired in a bankruptcy auction last month from a rival company can be refitted and floated for the 2024 season. Those ships, which made Winona calls in 2023:
> American Queen: (417 guests).
> American Countess (245).
> American Empress (223).
> American Duchess (166).
Earlier: Cruise line adds boats from bankruptcy auction
CBS retells Maddi Kingsbury’s disappearance
WINONA, Minn. – The CBS masters of crime documentaries are in final editing of a piece on the Maddi Kingsbury murder case from Winona. The report airs on “48 Minutes’ on primetime Saturday. Although the 2023 case already has received major news coverage, CBS reporter Peter Van Sant said “48 Hours” says “the most complete television report thus far.” Van Sant and his crew spent several days in Winona examining public documents, including statements from Adam Fravel, Maddi’s live-in partner and the father of their two children and who faces trial for murder. Abou tMaddi Kingsbury’s family and friends, Van Sant said they willingly told their stories. Among those interviewed:
> Scott Sherman, mayor of Winona.
> Spencer Sullivan, Maddi’s boyfriend.
> Fravel family members.
CBS in Minnesota
> WCCO, Minneapolis.
> KIMT, Rochester-Austin-Mason City.
> KBJR, Duluth-Superior.
> KCCW, Walker.
> KRII, Chisholm.
CBS in Wisconsin
>WKBT, Lacrosse-Eau Claire.
>WISC, Madison.
>WDJT, Milwaukee.
> WSAW, Rhinelander-Wausau.
“48 Hours” also streams on Paramount.
Van Sant profile
Peter Van Sant joined CBS News in 1984. As an Atlanta-based reporter. His investigative report on frequency medical helicopter crashes earned an Emmy Award. Van Sant was next assigned to London and reported on the collapse of the Soviet Union \ and won received a duPont Award. Van Sant also covered the first Gulf War, the reunification of Germany, famine in Africa, and other news in Europe and the Middle East. He joined he “48 Hours” team 1998. His report on terrorists seizing and destroying a school in Beslan, Russia, won him both his fourth Emmy Award and the Edward R. Murrow Award. He holds a cum laude with a degree in communications from Washington State University.
Van Sant. CBS correspondent both abroad and stateside.
Cops: Driver with too much vodka in soda mix
WINONA, Minn. – When a cop asked a Winona driver if he had been drinking, the man admitted to vodka and Mountain Dew. That seemed confirmed by a breath test that showed his blood contained 0.13% alcohol, more than half more than the legal limit. Taylor John Kujak, 31, wasn’t allowed to drive any farther and was taken to jail. He was booked for drunken driving. The stop was about 3 a.m. near Broadway and Harriet streets.
Traffic stop breath test: More than tipsy
WINONA, Minn. – An eastern Wisconsin driver didn’t do well on a field sobriety test during a traffic stop and was arrested. Police booked Luke Alan Wendling, 24, of Collins, for drunken driving. A breath test for blood-alcohol showed 0.14% — almost twice the legal limit. The stop was about 12:40 a. m. at Mark and Center streets.
News summary at mid-week: April 10, 2024
CRIME: Surrender ends Lewiston police stand-off
CRIME: Embezzler offers deal for $3.7 million Lewiston theft
CRIME: What if your sex fantasies are midgets
AVIATION: Med-evac copter in quick landing after bird strike
GOVERNANCE: House clarifies, broadens voting access
GOVERNANCE: How they voted: On state higher-ed package / 1
SCHOOLS: Perfect in Galesville: 36 on college admit test
HISTORY: Historical Society starts $2.3 million fund drive
HEATH: Bird flu jumping species: How serious?
HEALTH: Med-evac copter in quick landing after bird strike
HEALTH: Filling Chippewa Valley’s healthcare gap
CUISINE: The Great Winona Pizza Tease
College scores
Baseball: MSU-Mankato 6, Winona State 3
Baseball: MSU-Mankato 11, Winona State 1
Softball: UW-LaCrosse 6, Saint Mary’s 2
Softball: UW-LaCrosse 4, Saint Mary’s 2
What if your sex fantasies are midgets
AUSTIN, Minn. – When detectives went to confiscate child porn from an Austin man’s devices, he explained he had a thing about midgets. “I’m going to be honest with you,” said Jonathan Joseph Norcoss. “I like midgets, and the only thing close to that is small humans.” This is according to a criminal complaint against Norcross. He’s pleaded not guilty. He will see how the midget explanation flies with Judge Natalie Martinez at a pre-trial hearing in May. Meanwhile, Judge Martinez has set bail at $50,000.
Investigation and arrest
In May 2022 the Minnesota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force received a report from Instagram that a user had uploaded five files of suspected pornographic works involving minors. Austin police investigators traced the information to Norcross. According to the criminal complaint, the investigators confirmed that four files contained images of girls 6 and 11 in lewd postures. When investigators visited Norcross’s home in February 2023, he “did not act surprised, the investigators said. What did Norcross say on the spot? Investigators quoted him admitting first to drawings of small people. Is that illegal, he asked rhetorically. Detective pressed him, asking if by “small humans” he meant kids. Norcross explained: “Yeah, there’s not really midget drawings.”
Confiscacted devices, changes
Detectives seized Norcross’s phone, a laptop, another smartphone, Kodak memory card, a computer tower, an Amazon tablet, and three USB drives. The detectives said they found three files containing child pornography of under-age girls. Jonathan Norcross, age 27, was charged with seven felony counts of possessing child pornographic images. Detectives said they had no evidence earlier than July 2022, when they said Norcross’ phone had been factory reset locally and wiped clean.
Norcross. Fast-food grill cook.
Tornado sirens to wail: Not to worry, only a test
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Those tornado sirens you’ll hear Thursday are only a drill to check whether the statewide warning system is working. The drills:
> 1:45 p.m.
> 6:45 p.m.
The drills, part of Severe Weather Awareness Week, are an opportunity for everyone to review personal emergency plans, said the National Weather Service.
Shooting update: Lewiston man on own recognizance
WINONA Minn. – A Lewiston man arrested after a SWAT team stand-off Tuesday has been released from jail on his word that he’ll show up for further court appearances. A judge found no reason to suspect that Lance Rashawn Gore, 38, was a public danger. There had been gunfire inside a Lewiston home, which prompted 20 police officers with an armored vehicle to surround the house. After 3-1/2 hours Gore and two juveniles surrendered without incident. Although booked on more serious charges, the charge that went to court was lesser: Discharge of a firearm in a municipality.
Bird flu jumping species: How serious?
ST. PAUL, Minn. – State health authorities are on guard against a resurgence of the avian flu that decimated commercial turkey and chicken flocks over the past two years and now is crossing into mammals. Katie Cornille, senior veterinarian at the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, said the death of a goat south of Fargo, on the North Dakota border, was being examined for a possible avian flu connection. There have been no outbreaks in Minnesota, Carnille said. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, milk samples from sick dairy cows in Kansas and one in Texas recently have tested positive for avian flu. In all, 200 mammals have been found with the virus since 2022. It’s agreed among experts that there is little chance of a cross-over to humans if meat is cooked thoroughly.
Earlier: Quick slaughter for flu-infected fowl flocks
Earlier: Farmer destroys 140,000 turkeys to halt bird flu
Earlier: Report: Bird flu losses staggering
Emergency, fire crews make 48 calls
WINONA, Minn. – The Fire Department reported 32 emergency medical calls plus 16 fire calls in recent days:
> Tuesday, April 9: 4 medical calls plus 3 fire call.
> Monday, April 8: 5 medical calls plus 3 fire calls.
> Sunday, April 7: 3 medical calls plus 2 fire call.
> Saturday, April 6: 1 medical calls plus 3 fire call.
> Friday, April 5: 7 medical calls plus 3 fire calls.
> Thursday, April 4: 3 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
> Wednesday, April 3: 9 medical calls plus 1 fire call.
Earlier: Emergency, fire crews 38 calls
How they voted: On broader voting rules /1
ST. PAUL, Minn. — the Minnesota House voted 69-62 to expand election access for voters. The bill next goes to the Senate. How representatives from southeast Minnesota voted:
To expand voting
Kim Hicks of Rochester (D-25A).
Tina Liebling of Rochester (D-24B).
Gene Pelowski of Winona (D-26A).
Andy Smith of Rochester (D-25B)
Against
Pam Altendorf of Red Wing (R-20A).
Greg Davids of Preston (R-26B).
Steve Jacob of Elba (R-20B).
Patricia Mueller of Oakdale (R-23B).
Brian Pfarr of LeSueur (R-22B).
Quane Quam of Byron (R-24A).
Perfect in Galesville: 36 on college admit test
GALESVILLE, Wis. – A Galesville high school junior, Morgan Auman, couldn’t believe her own eyes when when she opened the results of her ACT college entrance exam: A perfect 36. Nobody in memory at Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau High School can remember anybody with an ACT of 36 before. Auman pinched herself and asked a teacher to double-check. ‘Twas true. How’d she do it? She has a few thoughts:
> Prepare by identifying your academic weak spots and focus on them.
> Wake up early, do your hair and dress up: “Look good, feel good, do good. And you know, it kind of worked.”
> Keep cool, take a big breath.
Auman. Intent on nursing at UW-Madison.
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