FISH CREEK, WI (WTAQ) - A Door County business is putting new limits on kayak rentals, after three people rented one of its boats and drifted for 14 miles in high winds on Green Bay.

Nicolet Beach Rentals is now limiting customers on where they can go, based on the numbers of adults and children renting their kayaks. The limits are designed to make sure there are enough people to get the boats back to shore if need be -- and if not, the store now has a jet ski to tow customers in.

Douglas Smrz of Nicolet Beach tells FOX 11 they want to keep kayakers "close and safe." That's after a vacationing mother and two kids were planning to be out for just over an hour in a small bay in western Door County. Instead, they got caught in windy waves of up to 2 feet -- and search crews kept trying to find the family until a Canadian air force jet found them 15 hours after they left the bay.

The family could not contact anyone for help, so the rental shop now provides free water tight cell phone carriers for its kayaking customers.

Also, Peninsula State Park is working on rule changes for kayak rentals. Those are due out later this week.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - A former Green Bay Area Public School teacher has pled not guilty to sexually assaulting a child.

In court Monday, Jer Lovaj enter that plea to two counts of sexual assault of a child. He returns to court for a final conference on September 15.

The 58-year-old Lovaj is accused of touching a student while working at Sullivan Elementary School. He has since been fired.

Lovaj previously pled not guilty to a separate charge of repeated sexual assault of the same child.

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - A suspect in an Oshkosh home invasion and robbery remains on the loose after three others were arrested.

Police say they were called to an apartment in the 1700 block of Robin Avenue around 11 p.m. Thursday. A caller told police that several masked individuals were trying to break in to her apartment.

Officers arrived just as the robbers busted down the door and entered the apartment. Two of the people were arrested inside, while two others ran out the door. 

An officer caught one of them, but he broke free after a brief struggle. Following a short chase, a police dog caught the man and he was arrested. The fight injured the cop, who was treated and released from a hospital.

Investigators say the suspects knew the victim, and that they believe this was an isolated incident.

A 29-year-old Eurkea man was arrested for resisting an officer, causing injury to an officer, battery to a police officer, false imprisonment, armed burglary and armed robbery with a knife. He was the suspect who was injured by the police dog.

An 18-year-old man from Chicago was arrested for armed burglary, false imprisonment and armed robbery with a firearm.

A 13-year-old Chicago boy was arrested for armed burglary, false imprisonment, armed robbery with a knife and resisting an officer.

Police are still looking for 28-year-old Richard J. Reyna. The Oshkosh man is described as 5'9", 185 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes.

There is an outstanding warrant for his arrest, police say, and he has ties to Oshkosh, Berlin and Chicago.

Anyone with information is asked to call Oshkosh police at (920) 236-5700. Anonymous tips can also be left with Winnebago County Wide Crime Stoppers at (920) 231-8477, by text message with the keyword IGOTYA to 274637 or online.

APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) - A judge in Outagamie County has delayed the trial of an Appleton area woman accused of shooting her domestic partner to death. 

55-year-old Dianna Siveny was scheduled to go on trial a week from today, and the prosecution is missing some key evidence in the case. Siveny is charged with homicide and substantial battery in the death of Lara Plamann, whose body was found in October of 2007 in the shed of a Greenville home the two had shared.

Authorities said Siveny's daughter Kandi did the actual shooting, which reportedly occurred because Plamann had cheated on Kandi's mother. A third person, Rosie Campbell of St. Paul Minnesota, is also charged in the case -- and she's refusing to testify against Dianna Siveny even if her remarks get immunity from her prosecution.

Outagamie County District Attorney Carrie Schneider says Campbell's testimony is a "necessity" in the state's case. Schneider asked that next week's trial be delayed -- and the judge rescheduled Dianna Siveny's trial for January 26.

Campbell reportedly made a confession which resulted in the arrests. But she has asked the judge to throw out her confession, claiming police illegally detained her and coerced her statements.

On Friday, Campbell’s trial was rescheduled to begin October 20. Kandy Siveny’s trial is set to start September 29.

(Additional reporting from FOX 11 and Wheeler News Service)

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - An investigation into shots being fired near the corner of Bellevue and Amy Streets on Green Bay's east side got a late start Monday.

That's because police say neighbors didn't call them right away, because they thought they heard fireworks instead of gunshots.

Police were called Monday morning after a man found bullet holes in his walls. Cops said 9 bullet holes were counted on the side of his apartment unit.

The investigation into the apparent drive-by incident continues, but police say it's a good reminder that people should call them even if they think they're only hearing fireworks.

“Unfortunately getting the initial call over eight hours after the incident kind of hampers our efforts,” Captain Bill Galvin with the Green Bay Police Department told FOX 11.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - A Green Bay man will spend 18 years in prison for causing the death of his girlfriend's two-year-old son.

Nicholas Willies struck a plea deal in June with Brown County prosecutors. He pleaded no contest to an amended charge of second-degree reckless homicide in the death of young Alex Fountain in January of last year.

The toddler died from head and abdominal injuries.

The 30-year-old Willies apologized to the Fountain family during his sentencing Monday. The boy's mother Juanita said Willies robbed the world of a beautiful, smiling child.

Circuit Judge Marc Hammer said Willies should not have been caring for the youngster, because he couldn't care for anyone but himself.

When he leaves prison, Willies must spend another 14 years under extended supervision.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

REEDSVILLE, WI (WTAQ) - A 47-year-old woman has died in an SUV crash in Manitowoc County.

The State Patrol said the driver was going east on Highway 10 near Reedsville when she crossed traffic lanes, veered into the left ditch, and rolled over. The crash happened about 6:45 p.m. Monday.

The woman was ejected from her SUV. She was taken to a Manitowoc hospital where she died.

The victim's name and hometown were not immediately released.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

WAUPACA, WI (WTAQ) - The Waupaca Foundry is being sold.

The private investment firm of KPS Capital Partners said Tuesday morning it has agreed to sell the company to Hitachi Metals for $1.3 billion.

Waupaca is the world's largest iron foundry. According to KPS, it's North America's top supplier of iron castings for the auto and commercial vehicle industry, agriculture, and the construction and industrial markets.

The sale to Hitachi is expected to be finalized before the end of the year.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI (WTAQ) - Central Wisconsin was pounded by rain Monday and Monday night.

Wisconsin Rapids had 3.6 inches -- almost twice as much as the city's old record rainfall for the date, set in 1990. The National Weather Service said Rapids also had marble-sized hail and 54 mile an hour winds.

In nearby Nekoosa, trees and power lines fell. They also had street floods and dime-sized hail.

New London had almost 3 inches of rain Monday. Necedah had 2.5 inches of rain extending into the overnight, plus with small hail. Plover had three-quarters inch of rain in just 10 minutes.

Hail of an inch or less fell at Eau Claire, Barron, Rosendale, Adams, and Appleton. Rush hour motorists in Oshkosh had flooded streets downtown late Monday.

Storms also hit far southern Wisconsin, where 1,200 We Energies' customers were without power Tuesday morning. More than 200 Wisconsin Public Service customers were in the dark in the Green Bay area.

All told, around 1,500 outages were reported by the state's five largest utilities.

More showers and isolated storms are in the forecast Tuesday. There's a chance of rain in the statewide forecast every day into the weekend.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - Students at Green Bay Preble High School now know how they will make up for lost classroom time after the fire that heavily damaged the school.

Back on August 8, a fire that started in the field house started by spontaneous combustion when rags used to clean up a chemical used to resurface the floor were improperly disposed of in a plastic garbage can.

Officials with the Green Bay Area Public School District on Tuesday said they chose this calendar as the best option available to them.

"Approximately 2 minutes will be added to each class period, which will result in the school day ending at 3:18 p.m., instead of 3 p.m.," says Mark Smith, Assistant Superintendent for Continuous School Improvement. "Because the school district values family time, our staff and students, we believe that the new schedule needed to avoid using weekends and holidays to make up time."

The school day will still begin at 7:30 a.m. 

District officials also made four of Preble High School's half days go to full days. Additionally, October 31 will be a school day for Preble, while all other Green Bay schools will be off.

The last day of school is still June 10th, which will also be graduation day for seniors.

J. Murphy with Paul Davis Company says they're confident they will have the building ready for students to begin classes, along with teacher workdays on September 10 and 11 and for registration at the Preble Commons on September 11 from 4 to 8 p.m. and Friday September 12 from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m.

You can look at the new calendar here, as well as a bell schedule for Preble parents here.

FLORENCE COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - Charges have been filed against a man accused of threatening tubers on the Pine River Oxbow in Florence County earlier this month.

Authorities say 70-year-old Gary Bovee pointed a shotgun at a group of tubers floating on the river in Commonwealth Township and told them the river belonged to him and that he was, "King of America."

Sheriff's officials say Bovee also confronted other groups of tubers on August 9.

Bovee was arrested and was found with two guns and 280 rounds of ammunition.

He's charged with 13 misdemeanor counts, including 12 of intentionally pointing a firearm at a person.

A $10,000 bond was set for Bovee in court Tuesday. He was also ordered not to have any contact with the victims or DNR agents. He also cannot go onto any DNR property, not to drink or possess alcohol, not to go into a bar or tavern and not to have a gun.

According to court records, Bovee's address is listed as Cottage Grove, near Madison.

(Additional reporting from FOX 11).

Ashwaubenon, WI, (WTAQ) - Passnegers catching flights, those picking up arrivals, or people just driving by may notice emergency vehicles, police and medics all around Austin Straubel International Airport today. 

Don't be alarmed....it's only a drill. 

The full scale, emergency airport disaster drill will be taking place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.  Mock disasters are required by the Federal Aviation Adminstration every 3 years.  

The airport will not be closed during the drill.

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - Oshkosh police a drug investigation last week netted two meth labs being discovered and seven people being arrested.

Investigators say they were tipped off on Thursday August 14 that a man wanted by authorities was living in the 800 block of Jackson Street. They also said that drugs were being made there. 

Officers arrived at the home and saw the 35-year-old man outside with a group of people. They arrested him, and then got a search warrant for the home.

Heroin, meth and drug paraphernalia were found inside the home and being carried by people there. Police also arrested a 33-year-old Oshkosh woman, a 31-year-old Oshkosh man and a 29-year-old Oshkosh woman. A 13-year-old boy, who was with one of the people arrested, was placed with relatives.

Investigators also learned that meth was being made at a home in the 800 block of Wright Street. Officers arrived and got permission to search the home and found a meth lab. They then arrested a 26-year-old Oshkosh man, and two women, ages 42 and 37. Police took a 14-year-old girl who was living there to a shelter.

Authorities say both groups of people knew each other. A crew from Chicago has been called in to clean up the remnants from the meth lab.

ALGOMA, WI (WTAQ) - Five friends say they'll paddle across Lake Michigan to raise funds for the Alliance for the Great Lakes.

Kwin Morris, Jeff Guy, and Andrew Pritchard -- all of Traverse City Michigan -- will join their buddies Joe Lorenz and J. Mueller on a 60-mile trip.

It starts on the Wisconsin shore at Algoma, and it's due to end at Frankfort Michigan. The goal is to complete the trip in 24 hours sometime before Labor Day.

They'll ride stand-up paddle boards on a mission they call "Stand Up for the Great Lakes."

The five hope to raise $10,000 for the alliance, which studies numerous ways to preserve the water quality of the Great Lakes.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

CHILTON, WI (WTAQ) - Steven Avery wants to drop a federal lawsuit he filed three years ago, which alleged that his civil rights were violated.

Avery claimed he was subject to unreasonable searches, and that his free speech rights were denied while he was in the Calumet County Jail. That was before his conviction in the 2005 slaying of Teresa Halbach at the Avery family's auto salvage yard near Mishicot.

Avery wanted $15 million in punitive damages from a number of government officials. But that was before Federal Judge Lynn Adelman refused to give him a tax-funded public defender.

Avery wrote a handwritten request to drop his lawsuit. An attorney for the defendants is asking that the suit be dismissed with prejudice -- which means he cannot re-file the claim if he ever gets the proper legal representation.

Avery and his nephew Brendan Dassey are both in prison for shooting and burning Halbach on Halloween almost 9 years ago.

The case drew national attention, because Avery was freed from prison two-and-a-half years before the murder. He served 18 years for a rape which DNA evidence later showed he didn't commit.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - The UW Board of Regents could decide Thursday whether to ask for $95 million more tax dollars in the next two-year state budget.

Governor Scott Walker told state agencies last month not to expect any increase in tax funding in the budget he would propose in February, if he gets re-elected this fall.

The Regents will meet Thursday in at the Oshkosh campus, and they could decide whether to ask the Republican Walker for additional funding.

UW System officials say they need it to help pay for the university's new Talent Development Initiative -- which will seek to create new science and technology jobs. The UW also says it needs to boost the numbers of graduates, and put more students in internships.

System officials also say the 26 campuses need to preserve academic quality, in the face of another tuition freeze that Walker has proposed.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

KAUKAUNA, WI (WTAQ) - Authorities in the Fox Valley say traffic is expected to be a problem into the evening hours following a three-vehicle crash on Highway 41.

According to the Outagamie County Sheriff's Department, two people were injured and one person refused medical treatment after the pile-up near the Highway 55 exit in Kaukauna just after noon.

A 65-year-old De Pere man had to be cut out of his vehicle, which was trapped under a Goodwill truck. A spokesperson at Theda Clark Medical Center says he was listed in fair condition after being airlifted.

The Wisconsin DOT was busy all afternoon diverting traffic off onto Highway 55 and had to close the ramp from County Highway J to Highway 41 southbound. At last word, that stretch of highway will be closed until sometime tonight.

If you are planning on driving in the area, allow yourself extra time or avoid it altogether.

The Kaukauna Police Department is investigating the crash and being assisted by the Wisconsin State Patrol. 

(Additional reporting from FOX 11).

Allouez, WI (WTAQ) - Crews from Green Bay Metro Fire get an early start to the day.  They dealt with a house fire in Allouez. The house is on Longview Avenue, just off East River Drive. 

They kept the flames confined to the garage, but there's smoke damage to the home.

Firefighters were called to the scene just after 4:30 this morning. 

Everyone in the two story duplex made it out safely.   N

No word yet on what caused the fire.

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - The UW Board of Regents Thursday agreed to ask Governor Scott Walker to allocate $95 million additional dollars for the university in next year's state budget.

During a meeting in Oshkosh, the Regents voted unanimously to seek the extra funding -- even though the Republican Walker warned state agencies not to expect more money next year.

UW System President Ray Cross said the extra funds are needed for a new job creation initiative, boosting graduation rates, and offsetting effects of a tuition freeze in the last state budget -- plus another freeze Walker said he would seek next year if he's re-elected.

(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - Oshkosh police say they've located a man suspected of shoplifting from a Walmart store last month, and he's already behind bars.

The 26-year-old Madison man is in the Dane County Jail on another arrest. 

Authorities say the theft of electronics and sporting goods happened around 1:20 p.m. July 22, but didn't specify what was stolen.

Investigators have not identified the man.