Wednesday, June 17, 2026
Tuesday, June 16, 2026
Baby zebra dies following severe leg injury at Milwaukee County Zoo
Steven Martinez
A zebra foal died Monday, June 15, at the Milwaukee County Zoo, the third animal the zoo has humanely euthanized in the past three months.
The foal, Mistari, was born April 22 to mom Thelma, who had been brought to the zoo in April 2025. The zoo's animal care and veterinary teams decided to euthanize Mistari after she suffered a severe open fracture to her rear right leg.
An initial assessment of the injury determined the bone had fractured into many pieces and the blood supply to the lower leg had been disrupted.
The zoo made the decision to humanely euthanize Mistari following consultations with large animal veterinarians and veterinary surgeons who determined the injury was not fixable with surgery due to its complexity and severity, the zoo said in a news release.
"Following the procedure, Thelma was given time to be in the stall with Mistari," the zoo said in the release. "[Thelma] sniffed her, walked in and out of the stall and did a small amount of vocalizing before ultimately leaving the stall.
Mistari is the third animal to die at the zoo since April. Brittany, an elephant and one of the longest-tenured animals at the zoo, died April 10. A little more than a month later, on May 19, the zoo euthanized a Chinese alligator named Yin. Yin had been at the zoo since 1995.
Clergy Gone Wild: Former Northwoods priest convicted of abuse to go before parole board
Laura Schulte
MADISON - A former Northwoods priest convicted of sexually assaulting young boys in the 1980s has a parole hearing set for July.
According to a source familiar with the case, Thomas Ericksen will go before the parole board on July 22.
Ericksen is eligible for parole on Sept. 11, according to Wisconsin's inmate locator. His mandatory release date is set for Dec. 5, 2032.
He was formerly denied parole in 2022.
Ericksen, 75, was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2019 on two charges of sexually assaulting boys while stationed at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Winter in the 1980s. He is also registered as a sex offender for life.
He was given 20 years on one charge and 10 years on the other. He was credited with 314 days of time served in jail since his arrest, both in Minnesota before he was extradited and in Wisconsin. He is currently being held in the Jackson Correctional Institution in Black River Falls.
The sentence was described as an "indeterminate" prison term, meaning the judge didn't have control over how long Ericksen would actually serve before he's paroled. He was eligible for parole as early as December 2019, just three months after he was sentenced. He was also eligible in 2020 but waived his opportunity to go before the Parole Commission.
At least 11 men claimed that the former priest abused them as children or teens in multiple counties across the Northwoods of Wisconsin, either by filing reports with police or speaking with USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin reporters. The former priest was arrested in November 2018, nearly a decade after victims first began sharing their stories with Sawyer County investigators.
Parole consideration is given only for inmates who committed a crime before Dec. 31, 1999. That was before Wisconsin enacted what's known as a "truth in sentencing" law, which means inmates generally must serve the entire sentence given to them by the court, with some exceptions for early release.
Because Ericksen committed the crimes before that law passed, his prison term is up to the Parole Commission based on his behavior while incarcerated.
Generally, inmates serving indeterminate sentences must serve at least a quarter of their sentence and must be released after two-thirds of their sentence. Using that framework, Ericksen would be required to serve at least 7.5 years in prison and would be released after 20 years.
Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@jrn.com and on X @SchulteLaura.
Mount Pleasant man sentenced in child sexual abuse case
Milana Doné
RACINE — A 39-year-old Mount Pleasant man was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison in connection to child sexual abuse allegations.
Matthew Wefler had been charged with one count of repeated sexual assault of the same child, one count of incest with a child, seven counts of child sexual exploitation and three counts of causing a child under 13 to view/listen to sexual activity.
At Friday's hearing, Wefler pleaded guilty to repeated sexual assault of the same child, incest with a child and two of the child sexual exploitation counts.supervisi
The remaining counts were dismissed but read in to the court record.
He originally entered a not guilty plea to all counts last November.
Wefler also was ordered to serve 10 years of extended supervision.
According to a criminal complaint, the FBI notified the Racine County Sheriff’s Office on June 24, 2025, about an investigation regarding the distribution of child sexual abuse material and a child sexual assault involving Wefler.
The FBI reportedly found “hundreds of pages” of chat messages in which Wefler and a man in Texas exchanged and discussed sexual content involving young children and Wefler’s dog.
Recent stories by Racine Journal Times reporter Milana Doné
Monday, June 15, 2026
Sunday, June 14, 2026
Saturday, June 13, 2026
Friday, June 12, 2026
Thursday, June 11, 2026
Cops Gone Wild: Family says police used excessive force to arrest teen. Police disagree
Cathy KozlowiczSteven Martinez
Videos showing a Menomonee Falls teenager's arrest have raised concerns among the boy's family about excessive use of force while the village's police department defends the encounter as "reasonable" and "effective."
The videos – police body camera footage and a separate video recorded by the boy's sister – show officers around 9:30 a.m. May 21 interacting with the 13-year-old boy and some of his family members before taking the boy into custody and putting him in a squad car.
The boy's sister's video captures the arrest, which involved three officers restraining and ultimately handcuffing the boy as he tries to pull away from them. The video shows the boy repeatedly crying out for help from his grandfather and swearing at the officers while police hold him down.
In the boy's sister's video, a male voice can be heard shouting, "Don't put your hand on his throat," followed by a female voice saying, "His hand is on his throat."
William Sulton, the boy's attorney, said the arrest was targeted and excessive. Sulton plans to file a lawsuit against the department and wants the three officers fired.
Because it involves a minor, the Menomonee Falls Police Department declined to provide detailed information on the case, but released body cam footage of the encounter in response to the boy's sister's video, which the department said showed "only a portion of the arrest."
The department said in a news release that the officers remained calm during the arrest and continually requested the boy's cooperation. They only used the level of force necessary to take him into custody, police said.
"Consequently, it is our department's conclusion that the officers' actions in this incident were both reasonable and justified," the release said.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is not naming the boy because he is a minor.
Sulton said the arrest was wrong "all the way around," and cast doubt on whether it required multiple officers. He also said any police involvement in the matter was unnecessary since the incident that triggered the investigation was a "private joke among family."
Sulton said a school resource officer became involved after there was a dispute between the 13-year-old and his 11-year-old brother about a photo on one of their phones. Sulton described the incident as "just two brothers being weird."
The Menomonee Falls Police Department told the Journal Sentinel that the school resource officer was Ryan Young. The other two officers were Vincent Strom, a patrol officer, and Michael Schroeder, a K9 officer.
The boy has since been released from custody, Sulton said. He did not immediately have information on whether the boy was cited or charged in connection with the arrest.
The Menomonee Falls Police Department told the Journal Sentinel that they will not disclose information regarding possible charges because the arrest involved a juvenile.
Cathy Kozlowicz can be reached at 262-361-9132 or cathy.kozlowicz@jrn.com.
2026 election: Here's who is running in districts representing Racine and Kenosha counties
Holly Gilvary
The deadline for candidates to file for 2026 elections in Wisconsin was 5 p.m. June 1. The Wisconsin Elections Commission on June 9 officially confirmed the candidates who will be on the ballot.
The general election is scheduled for Nov. 3. Some races will require a primary, which will be Aug. 11.
Here's who is running for districts representing Racine and Kenosha counties.
Incumbents are denoted with (i).
U.S. Congressional District 1
Bryan Steil (Republican) (i)
Miguel Aranda (Democrat)
Mitchell Berman (Democrat)
Peter Burgelis (Democrat)
Lorenzo J. Santos (Democrat)
State Senate District 11
Steven J. Doelder (Democrat)
Adam Duda (Democrat)
Nick Polce (Republican)
Ellen Schutt (Republican)
Sandy Wiedmeyer (Republican)
State Senate District 21
Jim Croft (Republican)
Trevor Jung (Democrat)
Wisconsin Assembly District 32
Greg Miller (Democrat)
Amanda Nedweski (Republican) (i)
Wisconsin Assembly District 33
Rick Bailey (Democrat)
Maria Elena Bisabarros (Democrat)
Rick Stacey (Republican)
Steve Wicklund (Republican)
Wisconsin Assembly District 62
Mike Bellagio (Republican)
Angelina M. Cruz (Democrat) (i)
Wisconsin Assembly District 63
Eddie Phanichkul (Democrat)
Robert Wittke (Republican) (i)
Wisconsin Assembly District 64
Ed Hibsch (Republican)
Tip McGuire (Democrat) (i)
Wisconsin Assembly District 65
Ben DeSmidt (Democrat) (i)
Valerie Kretchmer (Republican)
Wisconsin Assembly District 66
Gina Cefalu Paulick (Republican)
Greta Neubauer (Democrat) (i)
Wisconsin Assembly District 84
Chuck Wichgers (Republican) (i)
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