Morning State News Briefs: UW-Madison suspends fraternity for two years
Wisconsin News-- U-W Madison has suspended the Delta Upsilon fraternity for two years, after its members taunted two female students in March.
MADISON - UW-Madison has suspended the Delta Upsilon fraternity for two years, after its members taunted two female students in March.
The two women told police they were walking on the fraternity’s property along Lake Mendota when frat members yelled racial slurs from their porch. And as the women left the property, somebody threw a glass bottle toward them. The women were black, but a 10-member UW committee that reviewed the incident said the comments did not appear to be racial in nature. Panel chairman James Luo wrote that the comments appeared to have economic overtones with class-related terms like “peasant” and “the one-percent.” The Delta Upsilon suspension came less than a month after the group ended a probation for an alcohol-related incident. The new sanctions prohibit the fraternity from holding events and serving on the campus Inter-fraternity Council.
__________________________________________________________________________
The S.S. Badger Car Ferry ran aground near Manitowoc yesterday. It almost finished its first trip of the season across Lake Michigan when it got stuck on a shoal for several hours about 450-feet from the dock at Manitowoc. That was after the Badger left its home port at Ludington, Michigan yesterday morning. Senior chief engineer Charles Cart said the boat ran into sediment that often builds up in Great Lakes harbors during the winter. And a problem with a piston reduced the boat’s engine power, and hampered efforts to free it from the shoal. A tugboat finally freed the Badger, allowing passengers and their vehicles to leave. Crew members were expected to replace the piston and make some other repairs last evening.
_________________________________________________________________________
Six new charges have been filed against a La Crosse man accused of stealing a camcorder, and recording a video in which he gave his name and said the police would never catch him. 20-year-old Houaka Yang was originally charged with two counts of misdemeanor theft and illegally carrying a concealed weapon. Now, prosecutors have added five new theft charges and a count of bail-jumping. Police said they caught Yang and a 13-year-old going into unlocked cars two weeks ago and stealing the camcorder – plus GPS units, cash, and other items. Officers returned the camcorder to its owner. And when the owner saw the video of Yang identifying himself, he got his revenge by putting it on You-Tube with the title of “Stupid Criminal.” Yang is free on a signature bond.
__________________________________________________________________________
A rare song-bird is making its presence known in Wisconsin more than ever before. The DNR said record numbers of Kirtland’s warblers have been spotted in the Badger State – and their habitat is growing. But the bird is still extremely rare. Volunteer spotters have reported up to 30 Kirtland’s warblers in Adams County – and they’ve also been spotted in Marinette and several other counties. An annual survey of Kirtland’s warblers takes places each spring in seven Wisconsin counties. This year’s one-month survey ends June 15th, and more than 20 volunteers have joined state-and-federal experts in searching for the rare birds. The previous record was 23 singing males plus mates, for an adult population of 46. That was back in 2010. The Kirtland’s warbler has been a federally-endangered species since the 1970’s, when only 300 birds existed nationwide. That total has grown to an estimated 36-hundred. At this week’s Natural Resources Board meeting, volunteer Ron Refsnider – a retired federal biologist – received the D-N-R’s “Comeback Champ” award for his work in catching and putting tracking bands on Kirtland’s warblers.
More from around the web
RSS Feeds