Mike Longaecker
Primary tabs
Mike Longaecker is the regional public safety reporter for RiverTown Multimedia. His coverage area spans St. Croix and Pierce counties. Longaecker served from 2011-2015 as editor of the Woodbury Bulletin. A University of Wisconsin-River Falls graduate, Longaecker previously reported for the Red Wing Republican Eagle and for the Forum Communications Minnesota Capitol Bureau. You can follow him on Twitter at @Longaecker
Contact Email
History
- Member for
- 5 years 4 months
Author Content
A St. Croix County man stabbed his mother to death Saturday night in rural Hudson before shooting at police in an incident that led to a 50-mile pursuit into Minnesota, eventually ending with the suspect taking his own life, authorities said. The St. Croix County Sheriff’s Office identified the man as Glenwood City resident Logan T. Reese. The 28-year-old allegedly killed his mother, identified as 49-year-old Charlene Wold, at 733 N. Meadow Drive in the town of Hudson.
Authorities from Wisconsin and Minnesota were tracking a man suspected in a high-speed St. Croix County pursuit when the trail tapered off at a house near the St. Croix River. It was the same house where Minnesota dispatchers said a person reported a cellphone had just slid off the roof of his garage. About 30 seconds later, officers allegedly found their man on the roof of a home in the 1000 block of Rivercrest Road in West Lakeland Township.
Wisconsin authorities put out an alert Wednesday for suspects in a credit card scam that allegedly involves Walmart stores from Woodbury to Red Wing. According to a St. Croix Falls (Wis.) Police Department announcement, two suspects used cloned credit cards to buy gift cards on Sunday, Dec. 18, at a Walmart there. The suspects have been active in Pierce County and at Walmarts in Cottage Grove, Woodbury and Red Wing, according to police.
Railroad crews were working Nov. 8 to clear a Union Pacific line between Hudson, Wis., and West Lakeland Township after a multi-car derailment. The derailment occurred along the St. Croix River, on the Minnesota side, where a freight car could be seen tipped over with a portion resting on a beach. Union Pacific Railroad spokeswoman Calli Hite said a total of seven empty cars derailed during the incident, which occurred at about 2 a.m. She said the train crew reported debris on the tracks before the derailment occurred.
Editor's note: This story was published October 2016.
Last spring's spate of trespassing complaints at the former St. Croix Meadows dog track in Hudson led to another round of charges against four more people. Misdemeanor illegal entry charges were filed last month in St. Croix County Circuit Court against River Falls, Wis., residents Benjamin C. Spafford, 22; Bailey L. Morning, 20; Lena V. Carlson, 19; and Eugene T. Langlois, 17. Langlois also faces three misdemeanor criminal property damage charges, while Spafford faces one additional count of misdemeanor criminal property damage.
A metro bus headed eastbound on Interstate 94 created a false alarm during Friday's morning rush hour. The bus was seen displaying “call police” on its overhead display, prompting two Washington County sheriff's deputies to respond. The bus was pulled over at 7:42 a.m. just east of Neal Avenue in Afton. According to a Washington County dispatcher, the display was the result of a malfunction. “There was no emergency whatsoever,” according to the dispatcher.
Cops and their K-9 partners will be gunning to be top dog this month in Hudson. The U.S. Police Canine Association will hold regional trials June 12-14 at multiple locations in Hudson, Wis., where the public can get a look at the various disciplines officers and police dogs must master in order to receive their certification. "It's a certification, but it's also a competition," said St. Croix County Sheriff's Office Patrol Lt. Jason Sykyora, who heads up his agency's K-9 team.
HUDSON, WIS.—Two Woodbury teenagers face felony charges for their alleged involvement in a March rampage that amassed nearly $20,000 in damages at Hudson, Wis.'s abandoned dog track. Prosecutors in St. Croix County, Wis., charged Zackary J. Beyers, 18, and Tyler N. Hopwood, 17, with burglary and criminal property damage. Both counts are felony-level charges. The teens make their initial appearances on the charges on Thursday, May 12. According to a criminal complaint:
About one-third finished, the St. Croix River Crossing project heads into its prime construction season with officials hoping enough pieces will be in place by year’s end that the structure will at last begin resembling a bridge to passers-by. “Right now, it’s looking good,” said Paul Kivisto, bridge construction engineer for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, during a media tour of the project on Wednesday.