Jessica Doyle plans to visit local schools

7:10 p.m. | Wisconsin First Lady Jessica Doyle will visit two West Allis schools on Tuesday.

Depending on the weather, Doyle will be at a fourth-grade class at Franklin Elementary School Tuesday morning to share information on book clubs and a new Wisconsin geography game.

After that visit, she will head to Nathan Hale High School to talk with 25 students about the Wisconsin Covenant. The state program is one in which eighth-graders sign an agreement that guarantees them a place in a state college if they maintain a B average, take classes to prepare them for college and stay out of trouble .

Foundation kicks off fundraising effort

3:04 p.m. | The West Allis-West Milwaukee School District Educational Foundation is seeking 100 people who will donate $100 to the organization.

Officials hope the campaign, called WAWM 100, will fund annual grant awards beginning this fall.

The grants will support programs focusing on innovative educational ideas, enrichment and the impact on students. Teachers and staff in the district apply for the grants each fall.

For information, visit www.wawm.k12.wi.us/Education_Foundation.

Off-duty deputy suspended after suspected drunken driving

Feb. 06, 2010 8:22 p.m. | An off-duty Milwaukee County sheriff's deputy was suspended after being found behind the wheel of his car unresponsive and in an apparent highly intoxicated state.

The 36-year-old deputy was found about 2:45 a.m. Friday as his car was parked along the road in the 2000 block of S. 75th St. in West Allis with the motor running and the headlights on.

The 14-year veteran of the department was convicted of operating a vehicle while intoxicated in 2008.

After West Allis police were sent to the scene following an anonymous call, the deputy was released.

Why the deputy was not arrested or how he left the scene was not known.

Tosa East snaps two-game skid against West Allis Central

Feb. 05, 2010 9:41 p.m. | Darrell Bowie scored 17 of his game-high 21 points to lead Wauwatosa East to a 61-47 win at West Allis Central on Friday.

Bowie made 13 of 15 free throws, including eight of 10 in the fourth quarter to lead a remarkable display of foul shooting by the Red Raiders (8-11, 5-6), who had lost their previous two games.

East was 28-for-30 from the foul line, made its first 18 attempts and scored its last 16 points on 16-of-18 foul shooting.

West Allis Central's Nick Starich hit a pair of free throws with 3:06 remaining to pull the Bulldogs (9-10, 4-7) within six at 45-39. But the Red Raiders put the game away at the line.

Central freshman point guard Jarvis Garrett scored his team-high 15 points in the second half.

Ex-swim coach sentenced to 20 years on sex abuse charge

Feb. 05, 2010 12:09 p.m. | For three decades, former West Allis swim coach Daniel Acker befriended boys from broken homes, gained their trust and sexually assaulted them, according to prosecutors.

Acker admitted having sexual contact with about 20 boys - some as young as 10 - but said it was all consensual because he never used force, and they never said no.

"He said he was pleasing and pleasuring them sexually in gratitude for their friendship," a Department of Corrections employee wrote after interviewing Acker. "He stated he would never hurt a child."

Acker was sentenced to 20 years in prison Friday after pleading no contest to two counts of second-degree sexual assault of a child.

One of those counts involved a 12-year-old boy whom Acker met while coaching swimming at Frank Lloyd Wright Middle School in West Allis about 1990.

Follow us on Twitter for chance to win Bucks tickets

Feb. 04, 2010 2:48 p.m. | Follow us on Twitter and you could win a pair of Bucks tickets to Tuesday night's game against the Detroit Pistons.

All you have do is visit twitter.com/MyCommunityNOW, click the "follow" button, and then post your own tweet mentioning @mycommunitynow and the words "Tweet this for a chance to win Bucks tickets." The deadline to win the tickets is 5 p.m. Friday.

If you're already following us on Twitter, just send us the Tweet - this contest is open to new and existing followers.

At 5 p.m. Friday, we'll randomly select two people from everyone who tweeted "Bucks Tickets" - and they'll each will win a pair to tickets to Tuesday's game.

If you're not already following us on Twitter, do so today. Not only will you get a chance to head to the game, but you'll also be able to stay on top of the latest news, sports, photos and more from the MyCommunityNOW.com Web sites.

West Allis OKs temporary ban on smoke shops, adult gift stores

Feb. 03, 2010 10:58 a.m. | West Allis — The Common Council on Tuesday approved a temporary ban on new stores in the downtown area that sell "smoking accessories" or "marital aids."

Ald. Marty Weigel said he proposed the 90-day moratorium to give the council time to review city ordinances that restrict where such retailers can locate.

He said he was surprised that existing ordinances allowed a store called Blue, which sells smoking accessories and adult gifts, to open downtown late last year.

Weigel said Blue, 7223 W. Greenfield Ave., appears to be well-run. But there are concerns about stores that sell what are described as smoking accessories because such items can be used to inhale illegal drugs, he said.

Weigel said he also wants to be sure that stores selling sexual items not be permitted in certain parts of the city.

Firefighter comments spark suburban retort

Jan. 29, 2010 4:24 p.m. | West Allis — Debate over whether Milwaukee is playing with fire by cutting Fire Department staff has led to criticism of suburban departments such as West Allis, which has decided to fire back with words of its own.

The back-and-forth started with a leading Milwaukee firefighter who suggested that suburban fire departments aren't capable of fighting urban fires, according to an open letter written by the West Allis Police and Fire Commission.

The letter quotes comments made by David Seager, president of the Milwaukee firefighters union. He spoke Jan. 20 on Jeff Wagner's radop show on WTMJ-AM, according to the letter.

Seager is quoted saying a number of suburban fire departments, including West Allis', don't have the ability to conduct "urban firefighting."

"It's blatantly clear that these communities, if called upon, to respond to a working structure fire of any nature within the City of Milwaukee, they would have extreme difficulty . . .  not to mention the fact that the City of Milwaukee conducts aggressive, offensive firefighting tactics, which means that we actually go into the building and fight the fire to reduce any further damage."

CiCi's in West Allis a step closer

Jan. 29, 2010 9:16 a.m. | West Allis — CiCi's Pizza, a national chain that features an all-you-can-eat buffet, is closer to opening its first restaurant in Wisconsin.

The city Plan Commission gave its approval this week. A public hearing before the Common Council is scheduled for Feb. 16.

CiCi's would be combining two former restaurant sites - Johnny V's Pizza and Panchero's - into one at 2923-27 S. 108th St.

WestAllisNOW.com has a story on the Plan Commission meeting.

West Allis would be home to first CiCi's in state

Jan. 28, 2010 4:04 p.m. | The first CiCi's Pizza Buffet in Wisconsin is set to open in West Allis later this spring, owner/operator Paul Tate said.

The 3,600-square-foot restaurant will combine the spaces of the former Johnny V's and Panchero's restaurants in the Shoppes on 100, 2927 S. 108th St.

CiCi's will feature an all-you-can-eat pizza, pasta, salad and dessert buffet, Tate said. All food is prepared fresh each day at the restaurant.

Tate said he was drawn to the franchise after eating at a Minneapolis CiCi's. After doing more research and attending a franchising expo in Milwaukee, he decided to give the business a shot.

"We thought it would be very good for the Wisconsin area," said Tate, whose background is in the retail grocery business.

Milwaukee's statements on Pizza Man fire irk West Allis officials

Jan. 28, 2010 3:52 p.m. | It's safe to say West Allis fire officials didn't take kindly to suggestions their Fire Department would not be up to the task of battling blazes in Milwaukee.

In a letter to Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and the city's Police and Fire Commission, the West Allis Police and Fire Commission criticized remarks the Milwaukee fire union president made on WTMJ radio.

The letter quotes union President David Seager as saying West Allis and other suburban fire departments would not have "the wherewithal to conduct urban firefighting."

Several suburban fire departments, including West Allis, were called to cover Milwaukee firehouses last week as firefighters battled the large fire at the Pizza Man restaurant on Milwaukee's east side.

"It's blatantly clear that these communities, if called upon, to respond to a working structure fire of any nature within the city of Milwaukee, they would have extreme difficulty," the letter quotes Seager as saying on Jeff Wagner's afternoon WTMJ radio show.

Judge allows school districts' lawsuit over soured investments to continue

Jan. 28, 2010 3:24 p.m. | Five Wisconsin school districts' legal claims can go forward against banks that district officials say misled them to invest millions of dollars of borrowed money in risky investments, a judge decided Thursday.

In an oral ruling, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge William W. Brash III denied motions to dismiss the districts' lawsuit against Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. Inc. and Royal Bank of Canada Capital Markets, RBC Europe and RBC Holdings.

In ruling for the districts, Brash employed a minimal standard that considered only whether they could show a violation of the law if everything they claimed were proved true.

The districts will have a tougher time backing up their claims as the lawsuit proceeds, said Brian Cahill, an attorney for Stifel, Nicolaus.

"Now, the next step comes, which is much more expensive for everybody involved," he said.

Crews restore power to 12,000 Milwaukee County customers

Jan. 28, 2010 11:10 a.m. | Crews have restored power to about 12,000 We Energies customers in Milwaukee, Wauwatosa and West Allis customers who lost power on Thursday morning.

We Energies spokeswoman Irrisol Arce said at 11:05 a.m. that crews had restored power to all of the customers who were hit with the outage.

The outage was reported just before 9 a.m., Arce said. A transmission company that sends power to a We Energies substation lost power and crews were still trying to figure out why, Arce said.

The rough boundaries for the area without electricity were W. Bluemound Rd., Highway 100, S. 84th St. and W. National Ave.

Some traffic signals lost power in the area. Law enforcement officers were directing traffic at S. 84th. St. and W. Bluemound Rd.

Man wanted in Wauwatosa slaying arrested in Colorado

Jan. 27, 2010 2:33 p.m. | A Wauwatosa man who confessed to friends that he killed the mother of his young daughter was arrested early Wednesday in Colorado, officials said.

Authorities in Garfield County, Colo., were told Tuesday to look for a black 2001 Toyota Corolla driven by Benjamin M. Germano, 32.

According to New Castle (Colo.) police:

A police officer spotted the Corolla traveling west on I-70 in Garfield County and followed the car. Germano made a U-turn and began driving east in the westbound lanes, with the officer following.

Germano exited the highway but was arrested after he lost control of the Corolla and crashed. The Corolla's Wisconsin license plates had previously been replaced with Kansas plates.

Wauwatosa man charged in killing of ex-girlfriend

Jan. 25, 2010 4:54 p.m. | Wauwatosa — A man being sought by police confessed that he killed the mother of his young daughter - perhaps in front of the toddler - and then drove around with the woman's body in his car for four days, according to court documents released Monday.

As the search for Benjamin M. Germano entered its fifth day, the 32-year-old Wauwatosa resident was charged Monday with first-degree intentional homicide in the death of Sarah Rosio.

The body of the 24-year-old Milwaukee woman wasn't found until last Thursday, in a storage unit in West Allis, triggering the search for Germano.

According to a criminal complaint and a search warrant document filed in Milwaukee County Circuit Court:

Germano told two friends Thursday that he killed Rosio eight days earlier, on Jan. 13, at his apartment. He said the 5-foot-3, 100-pound Rosio attacked him in front of their daughter, and "I just snapped, I lost it."