Man found not guilty in death of wife, daughter; Report looks at effect of health-care reform law on Wisconsinites; more briefs

Talk about it

A Wausau area man has been found not guilty of charges that he caused a drunken driving crash that killed his wife and their 12-year-old daughter.

A Marathon County jury deliberated for seven hours before acquitting Travis Ploman of Kronenwetter late last night. He was cleared of four OWI-related counts as well as charges of causing injury and resisting police.

Authorities said Ploman crashed his family’s SUV on I-39 in Mosinee in October of 2009. His 40-year-old wife Jennifer and 12-year-old daughter Erin were killed. Jordan Ploman, 11, was injured.

Defense attorney Greg Meeker told the jury that Ploman suffered a diabetic reaction just before the crash. Meeker presented evidence that questioned the accuracy of blood tests which showed he was intoxicated.

Meeker told reporters that his goal was to keep Ploman and his son together and keep Ploman from going to prison. He said young Jordan lost his mother and sister but will not lose his father.

-----------

Report looks at effect of health-care reform law on Wisconsinites

A new report says two-thirds of the 500,000 Wisconsinites who do not have health insurance will be covered by 2016 under the federal health reform law. But some people who buy insurance through individual exchanges will pay more than they would now, even after they get the tax subsidies in the new program.

Those who pay more are likely to have better benefits. Others would pay less, and most Wisconsinites who get their coverage from employers will see no changes in their premiums.

Former Gov. Jim Doyle’s administration commissioned the report, which was prepared by a Massachusetts consulting firm. It was released Wednesday by state health officials.

Health Services’ Secretary Dennis Smith said the report proves that the Democratic health reform would cause a “very significant disruption in the marketplace” and raise premiums for some. Smith opposes the reform plan along with the rest of the Republican administration. He said people were promised lower costs, and the new report proves it won’t be the case.

But reform supporter Robert Kraig of Wisconsin Citizen Action said people won’t lose coverage or pay a lot more as they get older. He calls it a “guarantee of good quality coverage for everyone throughout their lives.” And Kraig said it’s a huge change from what’s happening now.

---------

Protestors ordered to stay out of Ryan’s office

Police have ordered a half-dozen protestors not to enter Congressman Paul Ryan’s district office in Kenosha.

The protestors have been picketing outside the office since last Thursday.

Janet Veum of Wisconsin Jobs Now said the demonstrators are unemployed residents, and her group helped arrange the protests in order to talk with the Republican House Budget chairman about economic issues.

Wednesday Ryan’s staff and the building’s owner complained to Kenosha Police. They said the demonstrators were disrupting things. Police said there were no arrests, and the protestors have complied with the order.

Ryan himself has been on vacation and has not been at the Kenosha office since the demonstrations began.

Ryan’s staff said they offered to arrange a conference call with Ryan or to have the group make a written request to meet with him in the near future, but the protestors said no to both offers.

A similar sit-in is being allowed to continue at Ryan’s office in Racine.

---------

Federal court upholds WIAA ban on live-streaming high school events

Federal appeals judges ruled that it is OK for the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association to limit who can broadcast state high school athletic events live on the Internet.

The appellate court in Chicago turned down an appeal Wednesday from the Appleton Post-Crescent. The paper and its parent firm, Gannett, challenged a judge’s order that said the newspaper acted improperly when it streamed four high school football playoff games in 2008.

The WIAA had contracted with another production company to show those games, and it sued the Post-Crescent to protect that deal.

The Wisconsin Newspaper Association joined the Post-Crescent in its appeal.

Gannett said the First Amendment gives the paper the right to carry the games. The appellate court said news outlets can report on the games, but they cannot broadcast them live under the free speech protections in the First Amendment.

---------

Man gets 28-year term for killing best friend

A Waukesha man was sentenced Wednesday to 28 years in prison for shooting his best friend to death last year.

Steven Osburn, 25, must also spend 20 years under extended supervision when his prison term ends. He shot 23-year-old Zachary Gallenberg to death on Aug. 6, 2010.

Osburn struck a plea deal in which he avoided a trial and a possible life sentence. He had been convicted of second-degree intentional homicide.

Prosecutors said the Osborn and Gallenberg often had playful fights and wrestling matches, but Osburn went to get a gun after Gallenberg hit him twice in the face on the night of the slaying.

Osburn told Circuit Judge Mark Gundrum that Gallenberg was being aggressive with him and he asked him a number of times to stop. Osburn said he thought about dropping the gun and running, but he feared that Gallenberg would pick it up and use it.

But the judge said he saw no evidence that the victim had threatened Osburn or that he would have used the gun. The two men had served in different branches of the military.

---------

54,000 turkey permits still available

If you’re still looking for a Wisconsin turkey hunting permit, you’re in luck. The Department of Natural Resources has over 54,000 permits are left over after its annual drawing.

The permits will go sale beginning Saturday. Hunters can only buy one permit per day, but there’s no limit on the number of total permits they can get.

About 41,000 turkey hunting permits were sold in the state’s drawing.

The leftover permits can be bought at D-R service centers and licensed agents or online at the DN-R’s website accessible through Wisconsin.gov.

---------

Homes, farm buildings destroyed by Tuesday-night tornado

Authorities now say almost two dozen homes were damaged, and about 20 farm buildings were destroyed by a tornado and thunderstorms in Clark County Tuesday night.

The storms contributed to the death of William Nickel, 75, a hospice patient at a home in Granton. He died after a power outage caused his oxygen machine to stop running.

Two people also suffered minor injuries.

The National Weather Service said an EF-2 tornado was on the ground for over seven miles near Chili. It packed winds of up to 130 mph.

Clark County emergency management officials said four homes were destroyed, two others had major damage, and 17 received minor damage. Four barns and 15 farm out-buildings were destroyed, and numerous other farm structures were damaged.

The National Weather Service surveyed the area Wednesday, and it found that some structures near Neillsville were also damaged.

A minor “F-Zero” tornado also touched down in the Shawano County town of Lessor Tuesday night. The only damage was to trees.

Wisconsin Emergency Management says it’s monitoring the situation. So far, it has had no requests for state assistance.

Tags: state news, wisconsin