City News

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Local inmate conditions in spotlight as officials weigh county budget

A prison in downtown Madison is taking center stage as officials and community members prepare for county funding plans to be decided next month. Among members of the public who spoke at a budget hearing Tuesday night, all but one of them called for improvements to the Dane County Jail, which is set to be renovated once county officials can agree on a plan for it. Officials have sparred on how to move forward with prison renovations for about a decade.

The meter’s almost up on current moped parking laws

Moped drivers in Madison probably won’t be revved up for a new city law changing where the vehicles can be parked. In an attempt by city council to clear the way for pedestrians, moped users will soon not be permitted to park on public terraces or sidewalks.

Man pulls knife on student near campus

A 36-year-old man was arrested early Monday morning after trying to stab a student on the campus-end of State Street.

Could moving late night eats curb crime? Some city officials think so

In efforts to reduce crime in the area, city officials are tweaking late night vending laws near a strip of downtown Madison bars.

Lane closures on West Washington Avenue: What commuters need to know

If you drive to work or school on West Washington Avenue, turn your signal on, because you’re going to have to change lanes.

Alec Cook will face seven separate trials in sexual assault cases involving 11 women

Former UW-Madison student Alec Cook will face seven separate trials in a sexual assault case involving nearly a dozen women, a county judge ruled Thursday. The case will be separated by victims and the type of charge filed, Dane County Circuit Court Judge Stephen Ehlke wrote in a statement, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.

International energy conference in Madison scrapped after speakers denied visas

An international energy conference scheduled to be held in Madison this month has been cancelled after the Trump administration denied several key Africa-based presenters visas to enter the country. The US-Africa Energy Summit 2017, organized by the UW-Platteville International Business Center, was set to take place at Monona Terrace Sept.18 and 19.

Two more inmates attempt suicide at Dane County Jail

Two Dane County Jail inmates attempted suicide Wednesday morning in separate incidents that were eventually thwarted by prison staff.

Which buildings near campus are up for makeovers in the 2018 capital budget?

Alleged racially-motivated argument downtown leads to man being knocked unconscious

A 29-year-old Madison man was knocked unconscious downtown early Sunday morning after being involved in what seems to have been a racially-motivated argument. The incident happened around 1:47 a.m.

20-year-old Madison man arrested for attacking two people near campus

Madison Police Department officers arrested Thomas G. Giles shortly after he allegedly attacked a woman and man on University Avenue.

In wake of Charlottesville, Soglin orders removal of Madison cemetery’s Confederate monuments

Mayors and local leaders across the U.S. have responded to the violence in Charlottesville by ordering the removal of publicly-owned Confederate monuments, and Soglin said he agreed with those “around the country also speaking out and taking action.”

Cook defense moves for 11 separate trials

Defense attorneys are seeking 11 separate trials for all charges brought against expelled UW-Madison student Alec Cook.

Former UW-Madison student found not guilty of third-degree sexual assault

A former UW-Madison student was found not guilty Wednesday of a felony sexual assault charge, though he seemingly admitted to sexually assaulting a sleeping peer in a campus residence hall in 2015. Following a two-day trial, a jury in the Dane County Circuit Court ruled 21-year-old Nicholas Ralston of Shellsburg, Iowa will be acquitted of third-degree sexual assault. Ralston, who was expelled months after the assault, reportedly initiated nonconsensual oral sex with his roommate’s girlfriend in their Ogg Hall dorm room in April 2015, according to the criminal complaint. The victim and her boyfriend fell asleep on a futon in the dorm room after returning from a party around 1 a.m., the complaint said.

Two injured in robbery at campus-area apartment

At least two people were injured in an incident at a campus-area apartment Monday that was initially reported by WKOW 27 News as a shooting.

The trial for a UW student charged with sexual assault in 2015 begins tomorrow. Here's what you need to know.

More than two years after the alleged assault was first reported, former UW-Madison student Nicholas Ralston now heads to trial. 

Former UW student Alec Shiva pleads guilty in sexual assault case

Expelled UW-Madison student Alec Shiva, who was accused last November of sexually assaulting another student in a campus dorm room while high on LSD, pleaded guilty to three felonies and two misdemeanors Wednesday. The felonies, charged in the Dane County Circuit Court, include second-degree sexual assault, strangulation and suffocation and false imprisonment.

Woman assaulted on North Henry Street, suspect at large

Madison police are investigating a sexual assault reported on the 400 block of North Henry Street early Saturday morning.

Former UW-Madison student convicted of 2nd-degree sexual assault won’t serve jail time

Suspended UW-Madison student Nathan Friar—who was found guilty in April of second-degree sexual assault and use of force and accused of strangulation and suffocation—will not serve prison time, a county judge ruled Friday at a sentencing hearing.

Cook to face another felony charge in cases now involving 11 women

Expelled UW-Madison student Alec Cook, who is set to go to trial on nearly two dozen criminal counts including second-degree sexual assault, strangulation and stalking, will face another felony charge after an 11th woman reported he cornered her in a dormitory building. The newest charges, false imprisonment and disorderly conduct, were filed late last month and released to the public Wednesday, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Wisconsin State Journal.