Black people are disproportionately charged with election-related crimes. The disparity is even more pronounced than in the wider criminal justice system. (Amena Saleh/Wisconsin Watch)
Election fraud is exceptionally rare: Over the past decade in Wisconsin, it has been prosecuted fewer than 200 times, or about once for every 163,000 ballots cast.
The spring election isn't over until April 4. But already spending in this year's state Supreme Court has demolished the state and national judicial spending records.
The most expensive state Supreme Court race in the United States had been an Illinois contest in 2004, when $15 million was spent.
Wisconsin State Patrol asks all drivers to prioritize safety behind the wheel when celebrating seasonal traditions this month. With March Madness and St. Patrick’s Day approaching, it’s a time for festivities for many in Wisconsin, but those who plan to drink must also plan for a safe ride home.
Henry Larson of Reedsburg shows a beef steer at the 2021 Sauk County Fair. Larson has been part of the state’s Youth Agriculture Council, which is accepting applications for the next session. (Reedsburg Independent file photo)
Applications are being accepted now for Wisconsin’s Agriculture Youth Council.
High school students who will be seniors for 2023-2024 are eligible to apply.
Chrissy Barnard is a peer support specialist with the National Alliance on Mental Illness Wisconsin. Before her recovery, she was hospitalized for mental health-related issues more than 30 times in Wisconsin and Minnesota. “The whole system needs to change, because it’s so traumatizing. You’re treated like a criminal from the get-go, she says of Wisconsin’s disparate county-by-county system for delivering crisis care. “For someone who has no history of violence, or a criminal record or anything, it’s totally humiliating.” (Submitted photo)
When Chrissy Barnard faced a mental health crisis and most needed care, law enforcement handcuffed her, placed her in the back of a patrol car and drove her five hours to Wisconsin’s only state-run mental health facility for the general public.
More Wisconsinites are dying in the prime of life, from causes that chiefly include COVID-19 or drug overdoses. At the same time, there is another encouraging mortality trend: Wisconsinites in older age groups are dying at lower rates.
Since late 2019, sales of recreational marijuana have begun in two of Wisconsin’s neighboring states, while a third appears poised to legalize the substance soon.
