Wisconsin

Wisconsin Democrats say defeat of GOP amendments bodes well for November

Published

1 year ago

August 14, 2024

Wisconsin Democrats say defeat of GOP amendments bodes well for November

Wisconsin Democrats are celebrating the lopsided defeat of two Republican-backed referendums Tuesday, saying the results bode well for November’s general election.

The referendums would have amended the state constitution to require a governor to get legislative approval before spending federal funds on things like disaster response.

According to unofficial results posted by the Associated Press, both proposals failed by margins of 15 percentage points.

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The outcome was unusual for constitutional amendments, which typically pass.
In April, for example, voters approved two referendums that amended the Wisconsin Constitution to bar local clerks from using private grants or private employees to run elections. They passed by margins of about 9 and 17 percentage points.

Speaking to WPR at this year’s Farm Technology Days in Cadott, Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chair Ben Wikler said referendum questions normally “just sail through.” But this year, he said the state party, and groups like Wisconsin Conservation Voters, Wisconsin Farmers Union and the Wisconsin League of Women Voters hammered a “Vote No” message for months.

“So, they all said ‘no’ with one voice and the result was that, for voters that voted in August, they knew what these amendments were about,” said Wikler. “They knew there was a reason to get out and cast a ballot, and overwhelmingly, they rejected these constitutional amendments and affirmed that they want a governor to do what Gov. Evers has done, which is to make use of federal emergency funds to actually help people in the state get through hard times.”

Wikler said the overwhelming response from voters was surprising, even to him.

“I think this will be a big jolt of enthusiasm, and I think it bodes well for the chance for Democrats to win up and down the ballot,” Wikler said.

Voters fill out ballots Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024, in Fort Atkinson, Wis. Angela Major/WPR

Republican state Rep. Robert Wittke, R-Racine, was one of the lead sponsors of the resolution that led to Tuesday’s amendment questions. In a written statement, he said he’s disappointed with the result.

“This was not a partisan issue but one that sought to promote good governance in spending undesignated federal dollars that come into the state,” said Wittke. “Supporters of good governance were outspent by those who exaggerated the intent of the questions — and our message failed. It’s unfortunate, but we gave the people a chance to decide and now we move on.”

Rick Esenberg, who heads the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, blamed the loss on “out-of-state, far-left special interests” who he said “flooded the airwaves with misleading ads to influence decision making in Wisconsin.”

Wikler contends criticisms from Republicans about Democrats misleading voters “is a little rich.” He said the ballot questions were written in a way to confuse voters, and they were put on the August primary ballot by Republicans in hopes of getting a victory in a typically low-turnout election.

Instead, Democrats from the state to local level organized against them. Gloria Hochstein, who chairs the Wisconsin Democratic Party’s rural caucus, said that in the April election, the party didn’t pay enough attention to referendums.

“I think in April, we were blindsided,” she said. “We didn’t get busy worrying about those amendments that were on the April ballot until weeks before the ballots were coming out.”

Hochstein said she and other Democratic party leaders “learned our lesson” when they found out about the upcoming questions. At the state Democratic Party’s annual convention in June, an administrative committee voted to endorse a campaign aimed at getting people to “vote no” on Aug. 13, which paid off.

“I think voting no on the amendment was a unifying thing that brought people out to vote,” said Hochstein. “Even people who didn’t have a primary.”

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Wisconsin

Wisconsin judge sends Slender Man attacker back to mental health institution after group home escape

Published

6 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Press Room

Wisconsin judge sends Slender Man attacker back to mental health institution after group home escape

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Wisconsin woman who almost killed her sixth-grade classmate to please the fictional horror villain known as Slender Man was ordered back to a state psychiatric hospital Tuesday after she escaped from her group home last month.

Waukesha County Circuit Judge K. Scott Wagner granted a state Department of Health Services request to revoke 23-year-old Morgan Geyser’s release privileges. Geyser told the judge through her attorney, Tony Cotton, last week that she would not fight revocation. Wagner then approved the request during a short hearing.

Cotton didn’t immediately respond to an email message seeking comment.

Geyser and her friend Anissa Weier lured their classmate, Payton Leutner, to a Waukesha park in 2014. Geyser stabbed Leutner 19 times while Weier cheered her on. A passing bicyclist discovered Leutner, who barely survived. All three girls were 12 years old at the time.

Geyser and Weier later told investigators they attacked Leutner in hopes of impressing Slender Man enough that he would make them his servants and wouldn’t hurt their families. Both of them were eventually committed to the Winnebago Mental Health Institute — Geyser for 40 years and Weier for 25 years.

Weier earned conditional release in 2021. Wagner granted Geyser conditional release this past September despite warnings from state Department of Health Services officials that she couldn’t be trusted.

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Geyser was placed in a Madison group home. Authorities say that on Nov. 22 she cut off her GPS monitor and fled the state with a 43-year-old companion. Police arrested both of them the next day at a truck stop outside Chicago, about 170 miles (274 kilometers) south of Madison.

Geyser’s companion told WKOW-TV that the two of them became friends at church and had been seeing each other daily for the last month. Geyser decided to escape because she was afraid the group home would no longer allow them to see each other, the companion said.

Slender Man was created online by Eric Knudsen in 2009 as a mysterious figure photo-edited into everyday images of children at play. He grew into a popular boogeyman, appearing in video games, online stories and a 2018 movie.

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Wisconsin warns of “sextortion,” online crimes against kids

Published

18 hours ago

December 23, 2025

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Wisconsin warns of “sextortion,” online crimes against kids

MILWAUKEE – The FBI calls it an online crime against kids – perpetrators convincing kids to send sexual images of themselves and then blackmailing them.

Online crime against kids

The backstory:

The reality is settling in. This will be Brittney Bird’s first Christmas without her son, Bradyn Bohn, since he was born. That is because just nine months ago, the 15-year-old died by suicide, just hours after telling his family good night.

“This winter has been pretty heavy,” Bird said. “This will be a lot of first this year.”

Bird said Bradyn was the kind of kid who would always try to make you launch. The teen had a lot of friends, played sports, did well academically, and had big plans for the future.

“Definitely a kid who we were just so proud of,” Bird said. “Bradyn never struggled with or suffered from mental illness or depression or anything of that nature so immediately we knew, you know something’s wrong.”

Once police went through Bradyn’s phone, she said it came out he was the victim of the cyber crime, sextortion.

What is sextortion?

What we know:

“Sextortion is a form of online child exploitation where a child is coerced by a perpetrator to send compromising images,” said Jesse Crowe from the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

This week, the Wisconsin Department of Justice sent out a public service announcement on sextortion.

Officials say suspects often pose as someone else online. While exchanging messages, they convince a child to send images of themselves. Once they have explicit images of the child, they use the photos or videos to blackmail the child into sending even more images, money or ask for sexual favors.

FBI data, change in Wisconsin law

Dig deeper:

The FBI said victims are typically males between the ages of 14 and 17, but any child can be a target.

This crime led to at least 20 suicides between October 2021 and March 2023.

In the months after Bradyn’s death, change would come to Wisconsin. Earlier in December, Gov. Tony Evers signed Bradyn’s Law. It creates a new crime of sexual extortion in Wisconsin. It aims to ensure harsh penalties for those who exploit children online.

“It will bring, hopefully statewide, eventually nationwide attention to where every family is having this conversation with their kids,” Bird told FOX6 News.

Take action

What you can do:

The Department of Justice said the best thing to do if a child finds themselves in this situation is the following:

Block the perpetrator
Report the account, but do not delete the messages
Tell a trusted adult
Do not send any money

Resources available

The Source: Information in this post was produced by FOX6 News.

Crime and Public SafetyMilwaukeeNews

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Trump names Christmas Eve, Dec. 26 federal holidays. What does that mean for Wisconsin?

Published

1 day ago

December 22, 2025

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Trump names Christmas Eve, Dec. 26 federal holidays. What does that mean for Wisconsin?

President Donald Trump declared Christmas Eve and Dec. 26 to be federal holidays this year.

The Dec. 18 executive order deems the days as work holidays for all federal departments and agencies, but adds some of them will remain open. Certain offices may stay open on one or both days for “national security, defense, or other public need,” the order reads.

But, what does this mean for other federal workers and services?

Here’s what to know in Wisconsin:

Are Christmas Eve, Dec. 26 official federal holidays?

Even though Christmas Eve and Dec. 26 have been declared federal holidays in 2025, they are not permanent additions to the holiday schedule.

Legislation must be passed by Congress and then signed into law by the president for a federal holiday declaration to be official.

Who gets Christmas Eve, Dec. 26 off in Wisconsin?

Only federal agencies are set to be closed on Christmas Eve and Dec. 26, according to USA TODAY.

Since these two days have not been designated permanent federal holidays, many businesses that follow the schedule will likely not give their employees a last-minute extended Christmas break.

Wisconsin state government and Milwaukee city offices are closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but will be open on Dec. 26.

Will mail still be delivered on Christmas Eve, Dec. 26 in Wisconsin?

Yes. The U.S. Postal Service will deliver mail and post office locations will remain open on Christmas Eve and Dec. 26, according to its website. Mail will not be delivered and locations will be closed on Christmas.

Will banks be open on Christmas Eve, Dec. 26 in Wisconsin?

Yes. Banks will follow the typical schedule of being open on Christmas Eve and Dec. 26, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve. Banks will be closed on Christmas.

Mary Walrath-Holdridge of USA TODAY contributed to this report.

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