Oakhill Correctional Institution in Oregon has a COVID-19 outbreak of more than 200 active cases.
Two more inmates have died from COVID-19 in Wisconsin’s prison system, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related inmate deaths to 25, the state Department of Corrections reported Thursday.
The new deaths come as more than half of DOC’s roughly 20,000 prisoners have now been infected.
DOC reports inmate deaths as COVID-19-related after a medical examiner or coroner confirms that the virus was an underlying cause of death or a significant condition that contributed to death — a determination that can take weeks or months.
DOC added 54 new COVID-19 cases to its dashboard Thursday, which brings the total cases since the pandemic began up to 10,535 among inmates. Of those, 312 infections are active.
Cases are rising at a much slower rate than in October and November, when the prison system saw several massive outbreaks and daily case counts were often in the hundreds.
The largest outbreak Thursday was at Oakhill Correctional Institution, which had 205 active infections. The minimum-security prison in Dane County has had a total of 398 cases, or 60.7% of the inmate population infected. Thirteen staff were actively infected Wednesday.
Public Health Madison and Dane County added DOC data on inmate cases to its own COVID-19 data for the first time Thursday, prompting a surge in cases added to the county’s dashboard, though most were from December. Of the 753 cases added Thursday, 403 were from the prison system.
Most of those were from the Oakhill outbreak, but some were also from Thompson Correctional Center, a DOC prison in Dane County that has had 34 cases. Oregon Correctional Center, which is also in Dane County, has had one case.
The outbreak at Oakhill started in December. DOC spokesperson John Beard said inmates started showing symptoms and when their tests started coming back positive for COVID-19, DOC brought in the National Guard to conduct mass testing Dec. 14.
On Dec. 13, 20 inmates were actively infected. By Christmas, the number had risen to 172. The Guard came in for mass testing again on Dec. 28 and Jan. 4, Beard said.
Those who have tested positive have been medically isolated, Beard said. Those exposed have been quarantined “as space allows,” he said. Transfers to and from the prison have been temporarily suspended.
Only two other prison facilities had more than 10 active cases Thursday: Racine Correctional Institution/Sturtevant Transitional Facility and Drug Abuse Correctional Center.
Man accused of killing sister held for trial tops recent notable crime-related news in Madison area
Madison man accused of killing sister held for trial
A Madison police detective testified Monday that a dispute over several inoperable vehicles might have led to the fatal shooting last year of a 63-year-old Madison woman by her mentally ill brother.
Joseph G. Green, 58, was ordered to stand trial for the murder of his sister, Sheila M. Green, on Christmas Eve. Under questioning from Assistant District Attorney William Brown during a Monday morning preliminary hearing, Madison police Detective Justine Harris outlined surveillance video and other evidence suggesting Green drove a motorcycle from his Sawyer Terrace apartment to his sister’s home on South Midvale Boulevard about three miles away, shot her multiple times, called 911, then drove back to his apartment where he dumped a .380-caliber handgun into a dumpster.
2 in car critically injured in crash when distracted driver runs milk truck through stop sign, Grant County authorities say
Two people in a car were critically injured in a crash Wednesday when a distracted driver ran a stop sign in a milk truck, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office reported.
The crash happened about 11:30 a.m. Wednesday on Highway 18 at Highway G in the town of Wingville, Sheriff Nathan Dreckman said in a report.
Investigators determined that Tyler Holthaus, 30, of Glen Haven, was driving a 2012 Freightliner milk truck south on Highway G when he told deputies that he looked down at an electronic device and didn't see the stop sign. Holthaus drove his truck through the intersection and struck a 2021 Subaru that was heading west on Highway 18, Dreckman said.
2 men arrested after locking another man in basement, Madison police say
Two men were arrested Friday after allegedly locking another man in a basement on the East Side, Madison police said.
Officers responded to a disturbance in the 2800 block of Dahle Street around 2:30 a.m., police spokesperson Tyler Grigg said in a statement.
A woman told police she escaped the two men — Jonathan Schaaf, 29, and Anthony Scheppers, 52, — while they drove her around in a vehicle, Grigg said.
Update: Area cleared after Madison police find no explosives in car on Near West Side
Madison police have cleared the area after blocking off part of a street on the Near West Side Monday evening to investigate a vehicle with "suspicious material" inside, Lt. Eugene Woehrle said.
Woehrle said the 1700 block of Jefferson Street near Vilas Park was closed for several hours out of an "abundance of caution" after the suspicious vehicle was reported. The street was opened back shortly after 8 p.m. when police determined that no hazardous materials were in the car.
Update: 2 dead bodies found in town of Sun Prairie home; Dane County investigating
The Dane County Sheriff’s Office is investigating after two bodies were found Monday in a home in the town of Sun Prairie, authorities said.
The deaths were reported at 3:22 p.m. Monday in the 4600 block of Pierceville Road, Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Elise Schaffer said Monday. Officers were still on the scene Monday night.
Deputies and police officers entered the home and found the two bodies. The Dane County Sheriff’s Office did not release information on the identities of the individuals, how they died or how authorities were notified about them.
Madison police investigating after man found dead in Far East Side park
Madison police said Monday that a man was found dead Saturday morning in Reindahl Park on the city’s Far East Side.
Madison police and fire crews responded shortly after 8:30 a.m. Saturday after witnesses who were out for a morning walk through the park in the 1800 block of Portage Road discovered a body at the bottom of a small hill near the bike path, officer Tyler Grigg said.
Former state probation agent charged with sexual assault for alleged inappropriate relationship with parolee
A former state probation agent has been charged with sexual assault after police said they found she had a sexual relationship with a parolee who was under her supervision.
A criminal complaint filed last week charged Meredith J. Wachtendonk, 29, of Verona, who abruptly quit her job with the state Department of Corrections in September, with second-degree sexual assault by a probation agent. The complaint states Wachtendonk quit after she reported to her supervisors receiving a phone call from a woman accusing Wachtendonk of helping someone under her supervision sell and transport drugs.
Family sues over cold weather death of Georgia man who left Madison Veterans Hospital
The family of a Georgia veteran who died in Madison nearly three years ago when he wandered away from the Veterans Hospital in bitterly cold temperatures filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the federal government, alleging the hospital’s negligence led to the man’s death.
The adult children of Vance Perry Sr. sued the federal government in the Madison-based U.S. District Court of Western Wisconsin after the 57-year-old mentally ill man walked away from the Department of Veterans Affairs hospital on the Near West Side and was eventually found dead in a Downtown parking garage.
Catalytic converter thief caught on home security camera on Near East Side, Madison police say
A catalytic converter thief was caught in action by a home security camera on the Near East Side on Tuesday, Madison police reported.
The incident happened about 2 a.m. in the 600 block of S Dickinson Street, officer Tyler Grigg said in a report.
A homeowner woke up to notifications on his phone showing a car stopping next to his 2007 Toyota Prius. The thief cut off the car’s catalytic converter in about 90 seconds, Grigg said.
2 killed in head-on collision on Highway 69 in town of Montrose, Sheriff's Office says
Two drivers were killed in a head-on collision Wednesday on Highway 69 in the town of Montrose, the Dane County Sheriff’s Office said.
According to the Sheriff’s Office:
A 2001 Ford Escape was travelling south on Highway 69 in the north lanes when it clipped the rear driver-side tail light of a pick-up truck as the truck attempted to avoid collision.
