OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - Three people have been displaced by an Oshkosh apartment fire.

Crews responded to 227 Merritt Avenue just before 2 am.

It took 20 firefighters roughly 90 minutes to extinguish the blaze.  Crews remained on scene until 8 am.

Investigators say a roofing contractor started a small fire Monday afternoon and incorrectly thought it was out.

It smoldered all day and reignited at night.

Heavy damage was caused, but nobody was injured.

The Red Cross is helping two of the displaced residents.

SEYMOUR, WI (WTAQ) - Seymour Police says the driver is in custody after a reckless driving complaint ended at Seymour High School Tuesday afternoon.  

They say the incident was reported in the area of Highway 47 and Brandt Road in Black Creek.  

Nobody was injured.    

BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - A 24-year-old Green Bay man is heading to trial on charges he had drugs in his system when he caused a fatal Glenmore crash last August.  

Jonathan Mateo was allegedly driving 90 miles per hour when he rolled his vehicle after getting upset during a conversation with his girlfriend about their relationship.  

Samantha Rodriguez was ejected from the vehicle and died.  

Mateo is scheduled to be arraigned September 11.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - A Green Bay school that almost didn't have a football program this fall has hired four coaches.

Lombardi Middle School nearly canceled the season since they couldn't find coaches.

Signup and equipment handout is scheduled for August 24 and 25, with practice starting on August 28.

BOWLER, WI (WTAQ) - An 11-year-old girl put herself in harm's way to save her 2-year-old brother from a pit bull attack.  

Shawano County Sheriff's officials say the dog approached the kids while they were walking down a Bowler street last weekend.  

The dog bit the girl, who diverted its attention after it went after her brother.  

She was bit four times before witnesses used a baseball bat to fend it off.  

The girl was taken to the hospital.  

The dog, which was already on quarantine for killing another dog earlier in the week, has been euthanized. 

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - Dozens of people gathered at Green Bay's City Deck for a Tuesday evening vigil following weekend violence in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Loren Prince of Allouez organized the peace gathering, saying he woke up Monday wanting to do something following the Virginia clashes between white nationalists and counter protestors.

"Radical opinions on either side can tend to lead towards violence.  When your goal is potentially to seek violence as a solution, you are almost certain not to find creative, positive solutions."  

To avoid a Civil War, Prince believes the government needs to ensure protections for various minority groups.

"Oppressed people have demonstrated through millenia that when they feel that their voices aren't being heard, one solution they find is being violent."

Randy Scannell of Green Bay believes public gatherings need to promote a positive message that pulls people together and do something beneficial for the community as a whole.

"For awhile now, I've begun to feel like we're re-fighting the Civil War.  I guess the thing is that you have to never be complacent, always be engaged and always be working positively in your community, because if you sit on your couch, God knows what is going to happen."

Lina Habib of Green Bay says she was angered by the weekend violence but believes it can be overcome if people decide to take action instead of sitting silently on the sidelines.

"It's just a gathering of love and peace, the complete opposite of what we saw a few days ago at Charlottesville." 

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - As part of a packed agenda, Green Bay's city council voted last night to place the stalled Hotel Northland project into receivership.

Receivership means an independent third party would take over decision making for the project.

Mayor Jim Schmitt tells WLUK the move keep the project solvent and on a schedule that's realistic.

"At the end of the day, it's all about money. We now have real money if we go the receivership route."

Schmitt and city staff have negotiated with Octagon Finance to provide the necessary money to finish the hotel's renovation and pay subcontractors for work they've already done.

Octagon believes that total cost is likely between $24 million and $25 million.

JP Williamson is with Octagon Finance.

"We are firmly committed behind getting the project open, getting the subs paid, having it open to the standard that we all anticipated when we got into this project, but we're willing to do so in the receivership process."

Keith Harenda is the hotel's current owner. He has been unable to secure financing to finish the hotel.

Mike Frantz, Harenda's former paretner, told the council that he does have the money.

"If we go down that path, I'll proceed aggressivley and quickly to get it done. If we don't, I'll move on and do other things."

Some council members wanted time to look if Frantz's offer had merit. Plus, there was also concern that the receivership option was moving too quick.

In the end, the council voted 7 to 5 to pursue receivership. The other junior lenders for the project still need to sign off on receivership.

Schmitt hopes a judge will choose a receiver within the next month. Schmitt says the new goal is for the hotel to open by July of next year.

The city council agreed to support a new development agreement for the Rail Yard. That's the property formerly known as Larsen Green.

A development group led by Titletown Brewing Company plans to continue renovating the property's old warehouses for a mix of office, commercial, and residential uses.

The developer also plans to build 20 high-end town homes along the Fox River.

And, on a 10 to 2 vote, the city council passed a resolution supporting the county's room tax plan to replace the Brown County Arena.

The county wants to use room tax revenue to pay for most of a new $93 million expo center.

A county board vote tonight is the only remaining vote needed to move the plan forward.

If the room tax plan passes, the county would also move forward with a half percent sales tax increase to pay for a variety of other infrastructure projects.

MILWAUKEE, WI (WTAQ) - The Brewer's winning ways continued Tuesday night as they beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-1 to earn their third straight victory.

Catcher Manny Pina drove home two of the Milwaukee runs. Keon Broxton would add on an insurance solo home run in the 7th inning.

Zach Davies went 6 and 2/3s strong innings for the Crew, only allowing the one Pittsburgh run, and striking out 2.

Closer Corey Knebel came on in the 9th to pick up save number 23.

It's a quick turn around for these two teams, as they'll finish their brief 2 game series this afternoon.

Coupled with a loss last night by the Cubs, the Brewers are now One-And-A Half games behind the NL Central Division leaders.

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - A 19-year-old Oshkosh man has been taken into custody in connection with a July 27 shooting.  

Officers arrested Daniel Billings in the 2200 block of Bowen Street while he was sleeping in an apartment.  

Investigators say an anonymous report led to the arrest.

In addition, officers say they arrested an unnamed 18-year-old Oshkosh man in the 800 block of Merritt Avenue on charges of First Degree Intentional Homicide, Armed Robbery, and Carrying a Concealed Weapon.

The shooting in the 500 block of Hobbs Avenue left one person with life-threatening injuries.  

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - Oshkosh Police has arrested a 21-year-old Milwaukee man suspected of fatally shooting a 9-year-old girl while she was playing in her house in May 2016.  

Officers took Damonta Jennings into custody Tuesday night after he was located in a vehicle inside Menominee Park after park hours.  

Two vehicles were spotted near the railroad bridge.  One attempted to leave but was stopped inside the park.

Jennings, a passenger in one of the vehicles, reportedly gave the officers a false name on multiple occassions.

The two other suspects in the Milwaukee County case were previously taken into custody.  

Jennings will be transported back to Milwaukee to face charges, including First Degree Reckless Homicide.

As part of the Tuesday night incident, Oshkosh Police also took the 23-year-old Oshkosh man who was a passenger in the other vehicle into custody on a probation hold.  

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - A recent wave of lawn ornament thefts in Green Bay continues.

Police Captain Brad Florence says at least 34 thefts have been reported since July 21.

"In the last week or two, we started seeing some thefts on the far west side, not as many as what the east side has been suffering, but they are starting to spread out by the Ninth and Wood Lane area, bordering the Oneida Reservation."

Florence notes the department was able to obtain surveillance video from one victim's house that shows the suspect vehicle is a smaller, dark-colored, two door automobile.

"They slowly drive past the victim's house.  While the vehicle is still in motion, a passenger gets out of the passenger front seat.  He'll run into the individual's property, grab an item, and run back to the vehicle.  The vehicle never stops in motion."

Florence says they have been able to get a partial description of the perpetrator.

"That person is wearing a light colored shirt, light colored shorts, as well as dark shoes.  It looks like he is potentially a male white, taller, thinner."

With the suspects still at large, Florence has some advice for residents.

"Keep your exterior lights on.  If you do have surveillance cameras, make sure they are running and in good quality.  Just work together as a neighborhood."

Anyone with information about the suspects is asked to call Green Bay Police at 920-448-3208 or Crimestoppers at 920-432-7867.  People can also submit their tip by clicking here.

MANITOWOC, WI (WTAQ) - One person has been arrested in connection with a series of recent burglaries in Manitowoc, but investigators are still looking for one or two more suspects.

Captain Jason Freiboth explains what's been happening in one part of the city in recent weeks.

"Unknown suspects going into unlocked vehicles, unlocked garages and stealing property."

Freiboth says the affected area is between North 18th Street, west to North 23rd Street and Michigan Avenue, and north to Menasha Avenue.

Following vehicle thefts last week, Freiboth says officers arrested a suspect on an unrelated warrant.

"He was released from the county jail (Tuesday) and then he was implicated in doing more vehicle entries (early Wednesday)."

Freiboth says Manitowoc Police received a call at 1:18 am Wednesday about a suspicious man looking into a patio door in the 1000 block of North 21st Street.

K9 Neko was deployed and quickly found a lead.

"Our K-9 was able to follow a track through the backyard where he then noticed fresh bicycle tire tracks heading in a certain area."

Freiboth says that information was passed along to other patrol officers, who stopped a 26-year-old Manitowoc man on a bicycle near Holy Family Memorial Hospital on South 21st Street.   

He notes the man matched the description provided by the initial caller.

Through questioning, Freiboth says officers learned the man was coming from a residence in the 1800 block of Michigan Avenue and located items in a bag at a residence in that block that linked the 26-year-old to a burglary in the 2000 block of Rankin Street.

The 26-year-old is being held in the Manitowoc County Jail on charges of Burglary, Resisting Arrest, and felony Bail Jumping.

Freiboth encourages residents in the affected area to check their garages and vehicles for any missing items and urges them to always lock all doors.

Anyone with information related to the case or who has been victimized is asked to call Manitowoc Police at 920-686-6551 and reference case #2017-00012285.

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) - An Oshkosh Police officer has been taken to the hospital with minor injuries after his squad car crashed into a house on the way to a call.  

It happened around 6 am Wednesday in the 1000 block of Jackson Street when the vehicle left the road and went over a curb, into the front yard.  

The unnamed male officer is a 22-year veteran of the force and is expected to make a full recovery.

Wisconsin State Patrol is investigating.      

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - Governor Walker making it clear that Wisconsin is up for the challenge of a multi-billion dollar manufacturing giant coming to the state.

During a roundtable discussion at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College Wednesday, Walker says it's not just the potential of 13,000 new jobs but the also the $4 billion dollars in supply chain.

"Businesses right here throughout Northeastern Wisconsin can be a part of that. We think that's going to be vital to success of Foxconn going forward. In addition, obviously in the short term, immediately in the next couple of years we're looking at construction needs, construction firms, engineering firms," Walker said.

State and community leaders including State Representative David Steffen, Senator Frank Lasee, Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach, UW System President Ray Cross, and President of NWTC Jeff Rafin among others were in attendance.

Rafin says this potential deal will reaffirm the importance of manufacturing and its lucrative pay.

"Foxconn comes out and says, you know, these jobs are going to pay to start $50-60,000...well, that gets people's attention," said Rafin.

Walker says the state has spent the last 5 years getting positioned for an opportunity like Foxconn.

"So we're going to be aggressive on it but we're up to the challenge. That's part of the reason why they picked us was they felt we could handle the time frame they're looking at. They've done it elsewhere so, they're certainly capable of doing it as a company. We just need to make sure we're up to the challenge," Walker explained.

The Foxconn facility, a $10 billion investment, would be 20 million square feet, about the size of 11 Lambeau Fields.

The state Assembly has scheduled a vote for Thursday on a proposed incentive package for Foxconn.

Lawmakers will come to the floor to take up the bill, which includes nearly three-billion-dollars in tax credits for a factory the Taiwanese electronics company wants to build in southeastern Wisconsin.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - People will have a chance to sample more than 200 craft beers at a Green Bay event this fall.  

The fourth annual Northeast Wisconsin Craft Beer Festival will be held at Shopko Hall on the night of October 7 from 6-9 pm.  

Attendees will receive a free sampling glass for unlimited two ounce beer samples, as well as hors d'oeuvres.

General admission tickets are $40, and a limited number of First Call tickets are $55.

First Call tickets allow you to enter the festival at 5:00 p.m. to sample beers and include a take-home 32-ounce Pall Growler.

Designated Driver tickets are also available for First Call tickets at $20 and $10 for general admission.

Prices are $5 or more at the door for all ticket levels.

Tickets are available through the Resch Center's Ticket Star Box Office and website.    

MISHICOT, WI (WTAQ) - A Mishicot Police officer will not face criminal charges in connection with an overdose death.

A Wisconsin Department of Justice report released Wednesday indicates the officer responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle in the Fox Hills Resort parking lot on the night of March 27.

The officer reportedly determined a drug deal was taking place, involving the driver and people inside the resort.

One of those people, Dillon Galien, allegedly struggled to swallow something after chugging an entire can of soda, became agitated and resistant, and was placed in the back of a squad car in handcuffs.

Galien reportedly got officers attention a few minutes later by yelling and pounding on the car's windows and told them to call an ambulance since he "took enough meth to die."

Investigators say the ambulance arrived about ten minutes later, but Galien was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital.

The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office conducted an autopsy, which indicated Galien died as a result of "acute methamphetamine intoxication."

HOWARD, WI (WTAQ) - Northeast Wisconsin Technical College is breaking in its newest building with law enforcement from an island nation.

John Flannery is the Associate Dean for Public Safety at the college and says 20 constable police officers from the Caribbean will be training at the new building this week.

"They're from Bermuda, Trinidad, Tobago, and Barbados. They contacted our college and asked to provide training in different subjects with police," said Flannery.

The officers will be learning a wide array of tactics from emergency vehicle operations to defense and arrest tactics.

"But the week is chock-full of all sorts of different things; firearms, we have crime scene investigation. It's just a gamut of different topics."

Flannery says welcoming people from across borders is part of their international outreach with the college.

The building includes several new classrooms, a multi-purpose room, a bay where vehicles can be used in training, and an emergency vehicle operation track.

Community partners like the police and sheriff's department will be able to use the building as well.

The college has already booked events at the facility through the end of the year.

BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - A Brown County Judge will issue a written decision by September 11 on what evidence will be allowed in the October jury trial of a man accused of committing a May 2016 Bellevue murder.  

At a Wednesday motion hearing, George Burch's attorneys argued text messages between the late Nicole VanderHeyden and her boyfriend Douglass Detrie and testimony from Detrie's ex-girlfriends should be allowed.  

Defense attorneys say that information should be introduced since it was originally used to arrest Detrie, who was never charged, for the murder.

They are trying to argue that Detrie is the real culprit.

Defense Attorney Scott Stebbins says "the jury is going to be asking 'how could Detrie have developed the motive to murder the mother of his child?  How could he do this?'  They can't answer that question unless they have the full forest and the full context of this relationship."

Prosecutors claim that would be using someone's past to implicate them in a crime. 

Brown County District Attorney David Lasse says "they're asking to put a tree in front of the actual evidence that ties someone to this crime.  They simply want you to look at Doug Detrie's past."

Investigators say Burch's DNA and cell phone movement place him in the field where VanderHeyden's body was found.   

There is a stipulation that Burch must testify before his attorneys can accuse Detrie.

The two-week trial is set to get underway October 2.

ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ) - Instead of the usual automobiles, it was children's bicycles that filled the Lambeau Field parking lot Wednesday.

The Packers were one of the sponsors of a bike rodeo.

In addition to learning skills in a safety course, De Pere Police Officer Jedd Bradley says the children were told the importance of always wearing a helmet.

"The most important thing as you ride a bike, or if you're riding a bike, is have that helmet on. We have traffic accidents involving bikes every year. As we all know, the head is the most important part, and the helmet is going to save you, or prevent injury, if you will."

Roughly 800 free, fitted bike helmets were given out to the kids.

ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ) - An FAA-required disaster drill took place at Green Bay's Austin Straubel International Airport Wednesday.

Elements included responding to injured passengers and helping loved ones who rush to the scene.

Airport Director Tom Miller says "you don't want to wait until an actual crisis occurs to see if your plans and procedures are actually working, so that's the purpose of (Wednesday's) exercise."

Miller notes the airport is required to complete an emergency drill every three years.