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Federal judge rules in favor of Mukwonago trans student
A federal judge has granted an emergency temporary restraining order in a case involving an 11-year-old transgender student in the Mukwonago Area School District. The student, who has identified as a girl since the age of three, has participated in girls’ school activities and used the girls’ bathroom since the third grade without issue. That […]
Progress and problems persist at Lincoln Hills
The latest report by a court-appointed monitor on the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake juvenile correctional facilities was released Wednesday. Several improvements were highlighted in the report, including decreasing staff vacancies, a return to in-person learning for the facility’s youth and physical upgrades to the area. At the time the court-appointed monitor visited Lincoln Hills, […]
Republicans push bill to auto-admit top 5% of students to UW
Republican lawmakers are pushing a bill to make the University of Wisconsin automatically accept the top 5% of Wisconsin high school graduating seniors. The bill, they say, will solve problems their constituents have experienced getting their kids into the UW. Rep. Jerry O’Connor (R-Fond du Lac) framed the bill as a way of keeping Wisconsin’s […]
System to ‘annihilate’ PFAS chemicals deployed in Michigan
“Forever chemical” has become a widespread nickname for man-made chemicals like per and poly-fluroalkyl substances (PFAS). The same qualities that made them perfect for non-stick food wrappers and firefighting foam also made them unnaturally persistent in the environment. The developers of a new technology say they’ve come up with a way to take the “forever” […]
Tribe has mixed reaction to federal judge’s Line 5 shutdown order
Leaders of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa on Monday welcomed a federal judge’s order to Enbridge Energy Co. to shut down its line 5 in Northern Wisconsin, but criticized the order’s three-year timeline. “The Band appreciates the Court putting an end to Enbridge’s flagrant trespass and disregard for our rights,” said Mike […]
Milwaukee activists, officials react to shared revenue deal
Gov. Tony Evers and Republican legislative leaders announced last week they’d reached an agreement on administering the state’s shared revenue program. News about the details of that plan sent waves of unease through Milwaukee. The deal will help the city of Milwaukee and the county stave off a fiscal crisis, deep budget cuts and mass […]
New report offers deep dive into fentanyl overdose trends
A new report by Forward Analytics, a research division of the Wisconsin Counties Association, is taking a deeper look at the fentanyl-fueled overdose crisis. Deaths linked to synthetic opioids, namely fentanyl, rose by over 1,000% from 2015 through 2021. The surge claimed the lives of over 4,300 people across the Badger State. Fentanyl was originally […]
Reckless homicide for overdose bill moves closer to passage
A Republican-crafted bill to increase reckless homicide penalties for people involved in drug overdose deaths passed the Assembly Wednesday on a voice vote. The bill increases existing penalties for providing drugs which result in a death from 40 years to 60 years. While framed as a way to punish drug suppliers, the bill drew familiar […]
Milwaukee zoning board approves new North Side addiction treatment clinic
A medication-assisted treatment center for people struggling with Substance Use Disorder (SUD) has gotten the green light to open a new facility on Milwaukee’s North Side. After a contested hearing held by the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals Thursday night the clinic, Community Medical Services (CMS), received approval to operate for five years in a […]
Wauwatosa Police Chief MacGillis takes department in a new direction
“The first two years have been really great, have been rewarding,” James MacGillis, chief of the Wauwatosa Police Department (WPD), told Wisconsin Examiner, reflecting on what many saw as a new chapter for the city. When he was hired in July 2021, MacGillis sought to move WPD in a different direction, cultivating positivity and building […]
Perspectives on addiction and recovery in a city plagued with overdose deaths
Amy Molinski, a peer support counselor at the treatment center Community Medical Services (CMS), began her journey to recovery from cocaine and heroin addiction 13 years ago. “I went to school to be an addiction counselor,” Molinski says, “and then had an opportunity to do peer support, which is just way more up my alley.” […]
Activists blast Milwaukee FPC for suspending video policy during RNC
Activist groups in Milwaukee are decrying a decision by the city’s Fire and Police Commission (FPC) to suspend a newly adopted video release policy during the Republican National Convention (RNC) next year. The policy, which was passed in April, requires that video of critical incidents such as officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths to be released […]