Wisconsin
Appleton’s I-41 named ‘angriest route’ in Wisconsin in law firm survey
Fox Valley area drivers, you’re not alone in your feelings around Interstate 41 construction.
In a survey from Munley Law, a personal injury law firm, I-41 was named the “angriest route” in Wisconsin. The law firm surveyed more than 3,000 workers nationwide on the worst commutes in each state that causes the most road rage.
The workers were asked which commutes make them angry because of road congestion, aggressive driving or unpredictable delays. Munley Law said people were polled to reflect the U.S. working population. The results of the “Toxic Traffic” survey were released in February.
The Fox Valley ranked on top of the list in Wisconsin, likely due to the traffic changes amid construction on I-41.
Traffic congestion probably won’t get better soon. The ongoing I-41 project will continue through 2030 to reconstruct 23 miles of the interstate between Grand Chute and De Pere.
One of the largest impacts of the project will start in spring in Appleton with the closure of the State 47/Richmond Street interchange. All on- and off-ramps and the bridge over I-41 will close from spring to fall this year.
Air your grievances in person
If you want to attend a meeting about the I-41 project, attend a public meeting at 5-7 p.m. March 17 at The Marq, 3177 French Road in De Pere, or 5-7 p.m. March 19 at Fox Valley Technical College’s D.J. Bordini Center, 5 N. Systems Drive in Appleton.
Contact Benita Mathew at bmathew@usatodayco.com.
Wisconsin
‘Very large snow storm coming’ Sunday, but snowfall totals uncertain
A significant snow storm will hit during the late evening on March 14 and last until the morning of March 16. The National Weather Service is advising people to plan to stay off the roads.
Weather forecasters aren’t sure how much snow central Wisconsin residents will see Sunday, March 15, but they are advising people to stay off the roads that day.
There is a significant storm coming that will hit during the late evening hours on Saturday, March 14 and go through March 15, lasting until almost the morning of Monday, March 16, said Scott Berschback, National Weather Service meteorologist in Green Bay. However, as of March 11, the National Weather Service isn’t putting out any predictions for snowfall totals just yet.
“There is a very large snow storm coming,” Berschback said.
Some weather apps on phones are predicting between 20-24 inches of snow for March 15 in Central Wisconsin, and The Weather Channel app says between 8-12 inches are expected.
The National Weather Service isn’t predicating amounts right now because saying there is a possibility of between 8-24 inches of snow isn’t very helpful, Berschback said.
The storm could hit closer to the Milwaukee area or up near the Michigan state line, Berschback said. He said it is going to be a significant storm, but as of March 11, it isn’t known whether it will be a major storm similar to what we’ve seen this winter or one that the area hasn’t seen in years, he said.
Berschback recommends residents keep a close eye on the weather this upcoming weekend and plan to not drive anywhere on Sunday.
Snow also expected March 12 in Central Wisconsin
There is another storm that is expected on Thursday, March 12, but it will be hitting north of Wausau, Berschback said. Wausau, Marshfield, Stevens Point and Wisconsin Rapids can expected about 1/2 inch to 1 inch of snow March 12.
Contact Karen Madden kmadden@usatodayco.com. Follow her on Twitter @KMadden715, Instagram @kmadden715 or Facebook at www.facebook.com/karen.madden.33.
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Legislature sued over spending millions on private attorneys
Gov. Tony Evers signs the state budget after midnight
Gov. Tony Evers signs the state budget after midnight
Law Forward, a Madison-based liberal law firm, is suing the Republican-controlled Legislature over its use of taxpayer money to hire private attorneys.
The lawsuit, which was filed last month, comes after a 2025 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel investigation found the state Legislature had spent about $26 million in taxpayer money on legal fees to private law firms since 2017.
The investigation found the vast majority of the spending came after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul won the November 2018 election, defeating Republican former Gov. Scott Walker and Attorney General Brad Schimel.
The sharp increase in spending also followed a law passed by Republican legislators in the December 2018 lame-duck session that authorized the Assembly speaker and Senate majority leader to hire private lawyers with taxpayer money.
“Wisconsin taxpayers deserve to know their money is being spent lawfully to advance a valid public purpose,” Law Forward President and General Counsel Jeff Mandell said in a statement. “This lawsuit challenges the tens of millions in taxpayer funds, most of which is wasted by the Republican-controlled Legislature on private legal counsel in pursuit of private interests.”
He called the practice a “clear violation of the Wisconsin Constitution’s public purpose doctrine and Wisconsin’s system of divided government.”
The lawsuit names as defendants the Assembly, Senate, Department of Administration and legislative leaders, including Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu.
Vos and LeMahieu could not be reached immediately for comment about the lawsuit.
The lawsuit cited a 2023 dispute in which the Senate continued to pay private counsel after it had been removed as a party in a case involving the use of surveillance cameras in Green Bay City Hall. The case cost the Senate more than $1 million in fees, according to records reviewed by the Journal Sentinel.
Assembly leaders also spent $1.8 million on fees related to former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman’s 2020 election probe, which found no evidence of fraud. The probe ended when Vos fired Gableman in August 2022. The legal fees did not include other investigation-related expenses, like Gableman’s salary.
Much of the spending at issue stems from the 2018 lame-duck session, in which Republicans passed a series of laws stripping Evers and Kaul of various powers a month before they took office. One of those laws allowed legislative leaders to pay for outside counsel with taxpayer money and circumvent the attorney general to intervene in lawsuits that challenge state law.
Since then, the Legislature has spent more than $8 million defending challenges to the lame-duck laws.
In a July 2025 interview, Vos told the Journal Sentinel the laws ensured the governor did not consolidate too much power.
“The norm is for one person to try to take more authority, because they can make an easier, quicker decision,” Vos said.
“I think that’s really unhealthy for democracy, which is why we have so rigorously defended the right of the Legislature and the court to maintain its own independence,” he added.
Wisconsin
‘Not a hiding place’: Ogden police lauded for role in catching Nevada, Wisconsin murder suspects
OGDEN — In the last week, Ogden police have helped track down two suspects wanted outside of Utah in connection with separate homicides, which has Chief Jake Sube lauding the efforts of local law enforcement.
“Ogden is not a place where violent criminals come to run, hide or blend in. If you victimize people and come here to hide, we will find you,” he said in a social media post Tuesday.
In the most recent case, Ogden officials on Sunday arrested Randy Darius Jenks, 36, wanted in Mount Morris, Wisconsin, in connection with the death of his grandmother. The woman’s body had been discovered that same day at her Wisconsin home, according to court papers filed in 2nd District Court in Ogden as part of Jenks’ arrest accusing him of being a fugitive from justice.
On March 3, police arrested Ziaire Jacob Ham, 22, who is charged in Las Vegas with murder in the killing of a woman and a toddler, according to court papers and Sube’s statement. Ham had been spotted in Ogden by an Ogden officer and subsequently fled to Roy, where he was arrested.
“The arrest of these two individuals reflects exactly how we protect Ogden every day. We use technology, relentless police work and coordinated action with our regional partners to find violent offenders, take them into custody and deliver them to justice,” Sube said.
Ogden Mayor Ben Nadolski echoed Sube’s comments. “Ogden is not a hiding place,” he said.
Waushara County, Wisconsin, law enforcement officials found a dead woman on Sunday at a Mount Morris home. Jenks “admitted to multiple family members” that he had stabbed the woman in the neck and killed her, and then drove to Ogden, according to court papers filed in Ogden. Wisconsin authorities alerted Ogden officials, who were also alerted on Sunday by the man’s family here that he was in their home.
“Randy Jenks was located and taken into custody and officers noted the presence of blood on Randy’s person and clothing,” court documents state. Police body camera footage posted to the Ogden Police Department Facebook page shows Jenks surrendering to officers.
According to WLUK, a Green Bay, Wisconsin TV station, Jenks faces a count in Wisconsin of first-degree intentional homicide. The court papers filed in Ogden say Jenks confessed to killing his grandma, complaining that the woman “pushed him too far.” A bloody folding knife found in the Ogden home where Jenks had fled to is the weapon he used to kill the woman, with whom he lived, the charges allege.
In the Ham case, an Ogden officer on March 3 spotted a car that had been reported stolen out of Phoenix, Arizona, with Ham inside, driving. The officer attempted to pull him over, but Ham fled, eventually making it to Roy and abandoning his car. Authorities arrested him nearby.
Ham is charged in 2nd District Court with theft by receiving stolen property, a second-degree felony; failure to respond to an officer’s signal to stop, a third-degree felony; and reckless driving, a class B misdemeanor. According to court papers filed Tuesday, he has waived extradition to Las Vegas. Sube’s statement on Tuesday said Ham confessed to the killings in Nevada when interviewed by Ogden detectives.
Authorities said they thought Ham had discarded a gun somewhere between Ogden and Roy. Ogden police said Saturday that the gun had been located.
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
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