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DNR announces report on runoff management grants
An annual report on runoff management grants has been announced by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The grants have been particularly valuable in the state’s responses to polluted runoff, which affects Wisconsin’s water systems. Runoff management grants helped local governments employ over 20 distinct pollution control practices and storm water planning activities during 2020. […]
A look at Milwaukee PD’s fusion center
“The fusion center, they’re sort of the ‘jack-of-all-trades,’ if you will,” explained inspector Paul Formolo, speaking of the heart of the Milwaukee Police Department’s (MPD) hub for intelligence gathering. “They have a multitude of functions.” Fusion may not be the most publicized aspect of MPD, but its operations are on the cutting edge of the […]
DNR partners with USDA on wolf management
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has announced it will continue federal partnerships to manage conflicts between wolves and humans in the state. Since the gray wolf (canius lupus) was removed from the federal endangered species list, concerns about wolf predation of pets and livestock have risen. DNR’s partnership with the U.S. Department of […]
300 days of Black Lives Matter protest
Beneath a gray, overcast sky, on a damp and windy day, protesters gathered in Madison Park near Wauwatosa. Among them were the parents of 25-year-old Jay Anderson Jr., who was killed by former Wauwatosa police officer Joseph Mensah in 2016. The group had gathered not only to pay their respects to the Anderson family, but […]
Local jail and prison populations lower due to pandemic
Local jails and state prison populations continue to drop in Wisconsin, as the state enters the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. A number of factors have contributed to the drop. “Though the number of people in custody has risen somewhat in local jails,” a report by Wisconsin Policy Forum states, “they are still 24% […]
Judge denies Tosa chief’s attempt not to testify in Jay Anderson hearing
The second hearing in the John Doe case involving the shooting of 25-year-old Jay Anderson Jr. raised more questions about the 2016 incident. Early in the hours-long hearing, Judge Glenn Yamahiro denied a motion to quash a subpoena calling Chief Barry Weber to offer witness testimony. Weber’s motion to quash relied heavily on the argument […]
WPD body camera program a move towards transparency
The Wauwatosa Police Department (WPD) has begun equipping all of its officers with body cameras. In past years only members of the motorcycle unit and, occasionally, supervisors wore body cameras. Pushing the body camera program forward was one of several demands made by protesters who marched in Wauwatosa during 2020. “Several Wauwatosa Police Department personnel […]
The Milwaukee Sheriff’s new drone unit
“We want to make sure we are doing everything right, protecting the citizen’s rights along with protecting the sheriff’s office as well,” said Sgt. Andrew Bilda, who commands the newly formed aerial drone unit at the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office. At a press conference Tuesday morning, the Milwaukee sheriff pitched the new unit as a […]
Policing panel brings Milwaukee chief and others to the table
“Community engagement is very big to me,” said Milwaukee’s Acting Police Chief Jeffrey Norman during a town hall panel hosted by All of Us or None Wisconsin on Saturday. A project of Breaking Barriers Mentoring Inc., All of Us or None is an organizing initiative led by formerly incarcerated people and community members affected by […]
Help the Examiner get records from the Kenosha Police
Sunshine Week is over, but the Examiner’s investigations go on throughout the year. Wisconsin’s open records law is meant to allow for members of the public and the press to hold government officials accountable. Sometimes, as we have reported, those officials fight transparency, using a variety of tactics to keep information hidden. Often, government agencies […]
Two stalled requests for police records
March 15 marked the beginning of Sunshine Week in Wisconsin. It’s that special time of year to celebrate the open records law in the Badger State, and its role in protecting government transparency and accountability. The ability to obtain internal records and documents from all facets of state government is crucial for journalists and the […]
Milwaukee PD’s hidden hand in the Wauwatosa curfew
On Dec. 4, 2020, Wisconsin Examiner received a final response to an open records request from the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD). The request sought any video recorded by MPD personnel during the Wauwatosa curfew two months before. It specifically focused on video and images captured by personnel assigned to surveillance and undercover vehicles during that […]