NEW LONDON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - Those who attended New London's Saint Patrick's Day festivities are being told not to eat the candy given out at the parade.

Police are concerned some of the candy may have been tampered with.

They are advising people to throw it out or turn it over to police.

It's a long-standing tradition for Barb Steffanus of New London and her family.

She tells FOX 11 the fun of the St. Patrick's Day parade has turned to disappointment.

"It's a bummer that the kids think that they have to get rid of some of their candy."

Sgt. Earl Ruckdashel, with New London Police tells FOX 11 in the hours following the parade, they received calls from people experiencing unusual medical symptoms.

"Experienced numbness on their tongue, and cheek area after eating what they thought was a Tootsie Roll from the parade."

He says the investigation is just getting started.

"We can't confirm if anything is related to the parade candy. We haven't found anything that's tainted yet, but we're still gathering information from people calling in."

He says no one has been hospitalized as a result of eating the candy.

"Sounded like the symptoms were only temporary. As far as we know, it lasted about an hour or more."

Police are recommending you not eat the candy.

They're encouraging people to throw the candy away or turn it over to the New London Police Department.

As for Steffanus she says, "It’s too bad, because it was just a great celebration for New London, New Dublin."

Anyone who suffered unusual symptoms from eating candy at the parade are asked to contact New London police at 920-982-8505.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) - A busy weekend on the roads for Green Bay Police.

The department says its officers made 79 traffic stops, with 62 citations having been issued for various offenses.

Nine suspects were arrested on OWI charges, while five others were arrested on drug counts.  

Green Bay Police deployed its OWI Task Force and Saturation Patrol for St. Patrick's Day weekend.

OCONTO COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - There's a new way for Oconto County neighborhoods to stay connected with local authorities.

County law enforcement has rolled out Nextdoor, which allows them to keep in touch with residents.

Chief Sheriff's Deputy Ed Janke says it allows them to "communicate with neighborhoods regarding any crime trends, criminal activity that's going on, any notices, any scam alerts."

Janke notes the convenience of the program.

"We can put out emergency notifications, so people can actually get alerts on their phones so when we send out things, they'll receive it immediately."

Each neighborhood has its own private website, where it can also share information on public safety issues and community events. 

"There is no cost.  Go to nextdoor.com and sign up.  They're allowed to identify by the neighborhood that they're in.  That will take them back to the sheriff's office or one of the municipalities that are participating (Oconto, Oconto Falls, Lena, Gillett, and Suring). 

At last word, Janke says roughly 25 neighborhoods and 400 residents had signed up.

NEW LONDON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - Those who attended New London's St. Patrick's Day parade are being told not to eat the candy that was tossed out.

Police are concerned some of the candy may have been tampered with.

"We are not saying it is tainted, and we are not saying it is not tainted," said New London Police Chief Jeff Schlueter.

Police say they have received 10 complaints about people or children with numbness or rash symptoms since Saturday. 

He said they have located a Tootsie Roll that may have been tampered with, and are in contact with the State Crime Lab about getting that candy tested.

"We are hoping to get that tested, and work with the crime lab on that to see if it is tainted candy, sour candy or if the candy isn't even related to it."

He said they have also been in contact with area health officials to see if the symptoms could have been caused by something different.

"They have brought up everything from allergic reactions, to old candy and even touching something on the road, Schlueter said. "We have had a lot of salt that has not gotten a chance to wash away since the last snowfall."

Police are still advising people to throw out any candy collected at the parade, or turn it in to police.

"We have gotten some, but not a whole lot" Schlueter said.

The parade is long-standing tradition for Barb Steffanus of New London and her family.

She tells FOX 11 the fun of the St. Patrick's Day parade has turned to disappointment.

"It's a bummer that the kids think that they have to get rid of some of their candy."

Schlueter says they want to be careful not assume that any bad intentions were involved, but time will tell.

"Until we have more of a conclusion to what is causing the symptoms, it is hard to move forward. Hopefully we will have more results soon."

As for Steffanus she says, "It’s too bad, because it was just a great celebration for New London, New Dublin."

Anyone who suffered unusual symptoms from eating candy at the parade are asked to contact New London police at 920-982-8505.

DE PERE, WI (WTAQ) - A community engagement event aims to get resident feedback for the City of De Pere's new Strategic Visioning and Branding Initiative.

Development Services Director Kimberly Flom explains the purpose of the new initiative.

"(We want to) market ourselves in order to attract talent, brand ourselves in relation with the expectation of services that this community provides, and define what projects the city needs to pursue in the next five years."

Flom says early feedback indicates a desire to make changes in downtown De Pere.

"More activity on the river, particularly active recreation; things like kayak rentals, events, concerts, art."

Tuesday's City Hall meeting runs from 5-7 pm.

"It's also live-streamed on our website.  A question will come up on the screen, and you'll be able to send your answer in via your (mobile) telephone."

Flom says they're looking to wrap up planning by early summer.

"And the implementation will follow shortly after.  The council included placeholders in the budget last year so that we would be able to move forward right away this year."

She notes the city is looking to hire a communications specialist, who will help with moving the plans forward.

MANITOWOC, WI (WTAQ)- Steven Avery has been granted a second extension of a deadline to file motions as he appeals his life sentence for the 2005 murder of Teresa Halbach.

Avery's attorney, Kathleen Zellner, is planning to submit briefs to the appeals court in Madison, and was granted an extension to May 21 on Monday.

The appeal is related to post-conviction motions which were denied last fall.

Avery's nephew Brendan Dassey is petitioning the US Supreme Court to review his conviction in the case.

MARION, WI (WTAQ)- A Marion teen has been charged marking a bomb scare.

17-year-old Jacob Teall is accused of leaving suspicious package on a doorstep earlier this month.

Police responded to a home on Hillcrest Drive on March 6 for a report of a suspicious package. 

Police say the area was evacuated after they noticed that the package had note attached. Police say the note stated that the package was a bomb, but it was later determined that it was a VCR, after the package was X-rayed.

Teall, is scheduled to make an initial court appearance April 24.

WAUPACA COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - An 18-year-old Tigerton man will spend 30 years in prison for his role in killing a man.

Prosecutors say Zachary Hohn, along with Adam Ozuna, are responsible for the April 2016 beating death of Matthew Pagel.

The pair reportedly picked Pagel up from the Clintonville motel where he was living at the time, having offered via text message to drive him to buy Adderall.

Instead, police say the two beat Pagel to death in the car, taking $200 from him.

Hohn will also spend ten years under extended supervision.

Ozuna was previously sentenced to 30 years behind bars.

BROWN COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - A 49-year-old Oneida woman will spend 20 years in prison for a fatal Hobart fire.

Prosecutors say Roni Anderson set fire to 89-year-old Harold Ambrosius's home in 2015.

Witnesses say Anderson would not let anyone try to help Ambrosius.

Anderson has also been ordered to spend 15 years under extended supervision.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - Area physicians have donated $65,000 to area organizations, all thanks to money collected by showing off their musical talents. 

'Doctors in Recital' performed their annual concert in January. 

Aspiro will receive $52,000, which will benefit its positive parenting program. 

Mike Duschene is Aspiro's president.

"Thanks to this money Aspiro is going to provide those parents (with) coaches and mentors along the way, as they raise their children."

Doctors in Recital has collected more than $400,000 for local charities since 2006.

NORTHEAST WISCONSIN (WTAQ)- After a long season of the winter blues, many in Northeast Wisconsin highly anticipate the first day of spring. 

The calander may say March 20 as the first day of Spring, but Roy Eckberg of the National Weather Service in Green Bay says the weather does not always corporate with that.  

"We can get snowstorms as late as early May, but we also have had a couple of days in March where we hit 80 degrees, like back in 2012."

Eckberg says the first week of Spring this year will be very close to the average in Northeast Wisconsin, with temperatures being in the 40's.

"There should be more sunshine coming towards the end of the week to help those winter time blues."

While there is no true indication that snow is out of the forecast for good, Eckberg says there are things that point to the end of winter. 

"The first signs of robins returning to the area to me is one of the first signs of spring."

Many hope that the first day of Spring is truely the end of winter, but time will tell.

"But we can get accumulating snow as late as May 28, however late May snow is a rare event."

For now, the National Weather Service is not forecasting any snow for the first official week of Spring.

OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - If you fish Lake Winnebago for walleye, be aware the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is looking for feedback on how the walleye should be managed.

The first of three meetings was held Monday night at DNR offices in Oshkosh.

Adam Nickel of the DNR tells FOX 11 it's the first update of the plan in almost 30 years.

"We've been working off that plan for the last number of decades and right now we're just looking at updating that plan getting the public involved in and seeing how things look for the future."

Those who were at the meeting discussed their concerns about the walleye population.

"There is a lot of general public that go out there and over harvest the system and on a regular basis and I think what we need to do is to really protect this system during the spawn," said fisherman, Larry Redmann.

If you didn't make it to Monday's meeting, there are two more opportunities.

The next meeting will be held Wednesday at the Engler Center for Performing Arts in Chilton.

The third and final meeting will be held March 28 at the Mosquito Hill Nature Center in New London.

Each meeting will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - There are concerns about turkeys in Ashwaubenon.

The village says it's receiving nuisance complaints, as some people say they are worried about their safety.

Rex Mehlberg, Ashwaubenon Parks, Recreation, and Forestry Director tells FOX 11....

"Turkeys are fun to look at when you first see them. They're just interesting birds."

But Mehlberg says the turkeys are starting their breeding season.

"The males like to try and scare away any other what they look at as competition. A person could be that to them."

He says the birds become territorial, and possibly dangerous.

"People are just concerned, because there have been some chases, and just large numbers. People really don't know how to respond to a group of turkeys."

Neighbors say they are familiar with the birds.

"My wife walks in the area, and actually, they've chased her a few times. They'll kind of start chasing her, and even surrounding her. It's bothered her a little bit" said Jerry Kern.

"They don't bother us. We seen them down by Sherwood Forest, when we walk the dog, what have you," said Phil Smith, Ashwaubenon.

Mehlberg says the big birds moved into parts of the village a couple years ago looking for food. They found bird seed, and cracked corn.

"A good way to keep them moving along obviously number one, don't feed them. They will keep coming back to the same area if you're feeding them. And number two is you want to try to scare them away."

Mehlberg says yelling, and waving your arms is a good idea. He says a leashed dog will also help get the birds moving.

"Anything that's going to startle them so they want to move on, and they don't want to stay in one spot."

Village leaders also offered other suggestions to scare away turkeys.

They say spraying a garden hose in the the turkey's direction will work.

They also say something as simple as popping open an umbrella might also do the trick.

DOOR COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - A Door County couple has been charged with trying to hire a hitman to kill a police drug informant.

Michael Estevez, 30, and Elizabeth Huettl, 29, were charged in February with delivering heroin.

Prosecutors say Estevez, once behind bars, then asked a fellow inmate to give the informant a lethal drug overdose.

Police say they monitored conversations on the matter, which reportedly included a meeting between the former inmate and Huettl.

The reported final offer was $1,200 and a used vehicle. 

The attack was never carried out.

Cash bond has been set at $50,000 for Estevez and $25,000 for Huettl.

Estevez returns to court on April 10 on charges of Conspiracy to Commit Intentional Homicide, Solicitation of Intentional Homicide, and Intimidating a Witness.

Huettl is scheduled to be back in court on April 26, facing charges of Conspiracy to Commit Intentional Homicide and three counts of Bail Jumping.

MARINETTE COUNTY, WI (WTAQ) - A $50-million dollar loan to Marinette Marine is one of the items the Marinette County Board is expected to vote on at its meeting next week.

The shipmaker says it would use that money to modify its shipyard to allow for construction of frigate ships, which are expected to follow the current production of Littoral Combat Ships for the U.S. Navy.

The loan was a discussion item at this Tuesday's meeting.

BRILLION, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) - A group of farmers gather to ring in the spring season in Brillion. 

'Rural Life Days' mass at Holy Family Church includes Bishop Robert Morneau offering blessings for a fruitful and safe farming season. 

The blessings are extended to things like tractors, seeds, and animals. 

Wisconsin Farm Report Radio Network's Pam Jahnke is the event's luncheon speaker.

"Neighbors depend on neighbors, in agriculture and rural communities, so it's just really nice to see this type of thing still happening in Wisconsin."

A second 'Rural Life Days' will be held Thursday at Sacred Heart Church in Shawano.       

GRAND CHUTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK)- Fire officials were called to the Holiday Inn on South Nicolet Road Tuesday evening.

Flames were reported outside the building.

Officials say the flames appear to be coming from a construction trash chute, but nothing has been confirmed.

NORTHEAST WISCONSIN (WTAQ)- The Wisconsin Department Of Transportation will be using aircraft and ground-based officers to enforce traffic and safety laws between Fond Du Lac and Sheboygan counties.

The goal is to reduce speeding.

The enforcement will begin Wednesday along a 19-mile stretch of Highway 23, and will go from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The State Patrol aircraft has a timing device to determine vehicle speeds and notifies ground-based officers of the violation.

Drivers have been warned for about a month, as permanent warning signs that indicated the area as an "air enforcement zone" have been in place.

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ)- A former Green Bay police officer has reached a settlement after claims of harassment by former co-workers.

Stephanie Dantoin settled with the City of Green Bay for $200,000. 

According to documents, Dantoin will also receive a letter of recommendation signed by Chief Smith and will receive health insurance coverage for the next year.

Dantoin resigned last year after claiming she was bullied and harassed by other night shift officers. 

Chief Andrew Smith called for the resignations of a lieutenant and patrolman after launching an internal investigation in 2016.

ASHWAUBENON, WI (WTAQ)- The Governor took his school safety message to an Ashwaubenon School Tuesday

At Valley View Elementary School, Governor Scott Walker read with first graders, and expressed the importance of passing his school safety plan, which includes money for measures to keep students and staff safe.

Walker said that does not include arming teachers.

"The teachers I talked to want to teach. They do not want to take on the extensive training that would go along with that."

The governor explained the importance of dedicating funding to protect those who spend the day inside schools, and says that could include how school buildings are designed.

"This $100 million dollars would be for grants and for physical structure and changes and modifications," Walker said. "It will could also be used for school safety staff."

Walker says so far, Wisconsin has been consistent with being quick and effective with passing important legislation, and he hopes that continues with this measure.

"In Washington we see people squabble over the process and things don't get done. That is not how we do things here in Wisconsin.We get things done when we need to, and this is one of those instances."

On Tuesday, the Senate reached a deal on the 100 million dollar school safety package, but tweaked the bill to remove any reference to having the money used for an armed guard, but did not prohibit the money from being used for that.