Tuesday, 2.24
Sgt. Daniel James Thompson, 24, of Madison is killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan, along with three other soldiers. News stories don't say how many state soldiers have now died in this war and Iraq; apparently we've lost count.
Thursday, 2.26
Sub-Zero Freezer/Wolf Appliances says it will lay off 350 workers from its Madison and Fitchburg facilities, on top of 79 layoffs in January, due to declining demand. The chill is palpable.
Daniel Wright, 49, is sentenced to 20 years in prison for stabbing his girlfriend to death last July. "Nobody loved her more than I did," he tells the court.
Friday, 2.27
Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz tells WTDY he supports the legalization of marijuana, saying, "I don't have a problem with it at all." He follows this with, "It doesn't matter what I think." Yeah, if only he were in a position of authority....
Nicole Endres, 29, is sentenced to four years in prison followed by 17 years of extended supervision for a drunk-driving crash in February 2008 that killed her 26-year-old passenger, Craig Sawicki Jr.
Monday, 3.2
The Dane County Ethics Board rejects a proposal that it hold hearings on ethics complaints in secret. It says it will air such matters in the open unless state statutory exemptions apply.
Tuesday, 3.3
Sara C. Kladehall, 21, of Madison, a former lead daycare worker at Rock-A-Bye Child Learning Center in Sun Prairie, is convicted of child abuse for pressing down on an 18-month-old girl until she temporarily stopped breathing. And Julie Alt, 51, of Madison, a former prison guard at Oakhill Correctional Institute, is convicted of second-degree sexual assault for having sex with an inmate. Both await sentencing.
American Family Insurance Group, one of Madison's largest employers, posts a net loss of $298 million for 2008; it's the third straight year of operating losses but the first not offset by other gains and benefits.
The Madison Common Council unanimously passes a law requiring that smoke alarms wired to the building's electric power or with super-duper batteries be installed in every bedroom and on every floor of rental properties. The law was prompted by the death of a student in a November 2007 fire.
Compiled (in part) from local media