Wisconsin
Unemployment claims in Wisconsin increased last week
Initial filings for unemployment benefits in Wisconsin rose last week compared with the week prior, the U.S. Department of Labor said Thursday.
New jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, increased to 3,366 in the week ending June 1, up from 3,295 the week before, the Labor Department said.
U.S. unemployment claims rose to 229,000 last week, up 8,000 claims from 221,000 the week prior on a seasonally adjusted basis.
North Dakota saw the largest percentage increase in weekly claims, with claims jumping by 164.7%. Puerto Rico, meanwhile, saw the largest percentage drop in new claims, with claims dropping by 43.6%.
The USA TODAY Network is publishing localized versions of this story on its news sites across the country, generated with data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s weekly unemployment insurance claims report.
Wisconsin
9-year-old drowns at western Wisconsin water park, sheriff says
A 9-year-old child died Tuesday evening after drowning in a western Wisconsin water park.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office says first responders were called to the Campfire Cove Aqua Park in Rural Balsam Lake, Wisconsin, around 8:15 p.m.
Though they attempted lifesaving measures, the child died at the scene.
The incident is under investigation, the sheriff’s office says.
Wisconsin
Missing Wisconsin teen Joniah Walker found safe 4 years after disappearing from home
A missing Wisconsin teen was found safe after mysteriously vanishing from home four years ago as her family had believed she was “lured away.”
Joniah Walker, 19, was safely discovered on May 25, the Milwaukee Police Department told WISN on Tuesday.
Police officials didn’t disclose where Walker was found or provide any further information on the case, including whether the teen was with someone else.
Walker, then 15, had disappeared from her Milwaukee home on June 23, 2022.
Walker’s mother, Tanesha Howard, said she last saw her daughter lying in bed when she left for work the morning of her disappearance, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
“Joniah was lying in bed because she had just finished school. I went in to give her a hug before leaving for work,” Howard told the organization.
The mother and daughter duo had talked on the phone several times throughout the day before Walker “suddenly stopped responding.”
Walker was supposed to meet her father to apply for a summer work permit but failed to arrive at the designated time.
“He called me and said that Joniah wasn’t picking up her phone,” Howard said. “That is when I immediately knew something was wrong. I left work right away.”
A nearby ring camera captured Walker leaving the apartment complex at around 2:30 p.m. in the Brewer’s Hill neighborhood, a mile-and-a-half north of Downtown Milwaukee.
Video footage showed the teen carrying a large green backpack.
It was the last known sighting of Walker until she was reportedly found last month.
Howard believed her daughter had met someone online after she deleted her digital footprint and never returned.
“Somebody stole her…that was my first instinct,” Howard said. “But when I saw that she left with a big backpack that I had never seen, that’s when I knew. I was like, someone lured her away.”
The protective mother issued multiple pleas for her daughter to come home, begging Walker to “call me,” WISN reported in July 2022.
“She is my youngest daughter, so I always call her by ‘baby girl’ because that is exactly who she is, my baby girl,” she said. “She is what I would describe as a perfect daughter. She is angelic, soft spoken and very intelligent.”
Walker was one of the faces of a legislative push by Wisconsin State Rep. Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison) seeking to pass a bill to create a Missing and Murdered African American Women and Girls Task Force, according to Fox6 Now.
Stubbs says she believed Walker was still alive, telling Howard to hold out hope for her daughter’s return.
“I believed Joniah was still living, and I said that to her – I don’t believe Joniah is dead, it’s only a matter of time,” Stubbs told the outlet.
“I think right now, the family needs their privacy,” Stubbs added. “I know there are so many questions, but I think as time goes by when they are ready to tell their story, they will tell it.”
Wisconsin
Wisconsin Unveils Culver’s Uniform Patch in New Video Ahead of 2026 CFB Season
Wisconsin’s sports teams will have a fitting jersey patch on their uniforms this year.
The Badgers unveiled a Culver’s uniform patch in a new video on Tuesday.
The fast food restaurant, known for its ButterBurgers and Frozen Custard, was founded in Wisconsin and is beloved by those in the state. Now, Culver’s has partnered up with the state’s flagship university.
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