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Foxconn Technology Group is pulling back on plans for a ten-billion dollar campus in Wisconsin.  The Taiwanese electronics giant said yesterday it won’t be hiring nearly as fast as it had planned.  When the massive campus was announced in 2017, Foxconn said it expected to employ more than five-thousand people by the end of 2020.  A company source now says that number will be closer to a thousand.  Foxconn also said about three-quarters of the jobs will be in design and

Police are examining cell phone records of the man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs.  According to court documents, the calls, photos, and videos on 21-year-old Jake Patterson’s phone are all being examined to determine a timeline of what happened.  Patterson is charged with kidnapping Closs and murdering her parents back in October.  He’s being held on a five-million-dollar bond and his next court date is February 6th.  Investigators in Barron County say they went through Jake Patterson’s phone, and

A Cornell man is going to prison for six years for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.  If you were paging through The Leader-Telegram, you likely saw that 22-year-old Thomas Hoyle pleaded guilty in October to second-degree sexual assault of a child stemming from a 2017 case in which he was accused of having sexual contact with the girl.  He’s facing more prison time in a separate sexual assault case from Chippewa County. 

Police in Vernon County are investigating the mysterious death of a woman.  The Vernon County Sheriff’s Office says 47-year-old Hillsboro resident Tammy Johnson was found dead early last Friday morning.  No criminal activity is suspected but the case is still under investigation. 

Several streets in Eau Claire are closed due to a water main break.  According to the city’s community service department, the break occurred on Menomonie Street just after five o’clock this morning.  Menomonie is closed between Ferry Street and Mount Washington Avenue and access to those roads is also impacted.  People are advised to avoid the area. 

Homeless shelter hours are being extended in Eau Claire due to the frigid temperatures.  Multiple shelters across the city including Positive Avenues and Sojourner House are opening earlier and staying open later so homeless people don’t have to be out in the cold as much.  The temperature this morning nearly got down to negative 30 in Eau Claire and wind chills were around negative 50.  Temperatures aren’t expected to get back above zero until sometime Friday. 

Bitter cold with extreme, dangerous wind chill is taking hold in western Wisconsin.  Sub-zero high temperatures will continue through tomorrow with lows dipping close to minus 30 overnight, not including the wind chills.  Health officials are warning of the dangers of frostbite on exposed skin, which can set in within five minutes at current wind chill values.  Postal delivery operations are suspended today in Western Wisconsin because of expected deteriorating conditions related to the Polar Vortex.  There will be no mail pick up

The case is being dropped against an Eau Claire woman accused of letting men sexually assault two children for drugs and money.  The state moved to dismiss the case against Michelle Mayer after an alleged victim admitted to using marijuana Monday night and concern was expressed for the victim’s state of mind.  The case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can’t be presented again. 

Assembly Democrats are withdrawing from a lawsuit over redistricting.  The move leaves a group of liberal voters to continue the litigation.  Pulling out of the case is allowing Assembly Democrats to avoid turning over documents and answering detailed questions to back claims that election maps should be redrawn.  States must draw new legislative and congressional districts every ten years to account for population changes.  

A Facebook fundraising campaign is responsible for raising thousands for an organization that works with the homeless.  Eau Claire’s Acting City Council President Andrew Werthmann started Emergency Relief for Eau Claire Homeless in the Cold, with all money raised going to Chippewa Valley Street Ministry.  The organization began in June 2012 and provides supplies, clothing, and hotel rooms for those in need.  The extreme cold has volunteers going out earlier than usual and adding an extra night of assistance this