of Juneau County
The Messenger HAPPY HALLOWEEN! VOL 15, NO. 14
LOOK INSIDE FOR YOUR LOCAL NEWS:
Elroy: Page 6 Mauston: Page 4 New Lisbon: Page 8
County: Page 3 Wonewoc: Page 12 Hillsboro: Page 9
Classifieds: Page 13 Legals: Page 14–17
THE AWARD WINNING OFFICIAL LEGAL NEWSPAPER OF JUNEAU COUNTY THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2013
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Second man charged in June armed robbery BY EVA MARIE WOYWOD On November 1st multiple felony charges were filed against 25 year old Jeffery Lyp of Wisconsin Rapids for what prosecution claims is his role in a June 2013 armed robbery which took place in the Township of Armenia. According to the criminal complaint, earlier this summer Juneau County Detective Ben Goehring was called in for an investigation of an armed robbery on County Road G in the Township of Armenia. Upon arrival the detective met with a deputy on the scene and was shown a total of seven rounds of ammunition located on the floor in the hallways of the residence. A victim on the scene informed the detective that she had seen two unknown people around the residence and that they entered the property without consent through an unlocked sliding door. The subjects were carrying handguns and wearing bandanas around their faces. At the time of the incident friends and family of the victim were present and the suspects ordered all of the women to get on the ground at which time they threw zip-ties at the women ordering them to tie their wrists and turn over money and their purses. The complaint goes on to state that the victim stated she began to comply and started towards her bedroom. She went on to state that as she entered the bedroom entryway she swung around and attacked one of the gunmen by grabbing the gun he was holding, eventually getting control of it and then used it to hit the suspect about the head and upper body. At some point the suspect regained control of the gun after the victim scratched his face and attempted to gouge his eyes out. She was able to unmask the assailant and stated she could identify him if shown pictures. As a result of the struggle the victim had injuries including a small cut on her ankle, a small cut on her left hand, and swelling to the left side of her head. In speaking to another victim on the scene the woman stated that during the time the suspects had the women get on the floor she heard them refer to one another as "Mike" and "Jake." The following week the victim who struggled with one of the assailants was able to identify two men from photos provided to her. Those men were Jeffery R. Lyp and Michael T. Edict. At the time Edict was being held by the Wood County Sheriff's Department on an unrelated matter. Detective Goehring had conducted an interview with Edict who initially stated he had never been at the house, however, through further questioning Edict made claims indicating that he had knowledge of the robbery and eventually admitted to involvement. Edict stated, "Two people come in, didn't touch no kids or nothin' told 'em just to get on the ground that's it. """"" got up told her to go in the back room and get the sh*t, she didn't want to do it she tried gettin' squirrely, *ucked her up a bit." Prior to that statement he had claimed the robbery took place due to the female at the residence being a "druggie" and "lowlife" who was selling heroin. On July 10, 2013 Edict was originally charged in Juneau County Circuit Court with being party of a crime - armed robbery, burglary, battery, and theft. Lyp is currently in custody of the Portage County Sheriff's Department on unrelated charges of Possession of THC (2nd+ Offense), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. At the time The Messenger went to press further hearings on the case against Lyp and Edict had not been scheduled.
THEY LOOK FAMILIAR Phil, Willie, and Si, the dynamic family from the popular show Duck Dynasty were spotted in Elroy on Halloween. It wasn’t immediately clear if they had ducks or candy in those bags. From left to right, Parker Friedl, Ally Friedl, and Rachel Waterman. TASHA MUELLER PHOTO
Tomah man charged in Juneau County with OWI with children in vehicle BY EVA MARIE WOYWOD A 36 year old Tomah man, Thomas M. Peterson, has been charged in Juneau County Circuit Court with operating while intoxicated with a minor child in the vehicle. Along with the first offense, he is also charged with felony possession of THC and possession of drug paraphernalia. According to the criminal complaint the incident leading to the charges occurred on Halloween evening, October 31st. Wisconsin State Trooper Charlotte Gylinn was working enforcement patrol on 1-90/94 when at approximately 11:34 p.m. was dispatched to a crash at mile marker 85 in the westbound lane. According to a caller, a vehicle had hit a guardrail and a semi. When arriving on the scene she observed a red SUV on the right shoulder of the road, and partially in the right lane of traffic. The SUV had extensive front end damage. Emergency responders were already on the scene as were Wisconsin Dells Police. A female passenger stated that they were on their way home to Tomah from Sun Prairie and that she was sleeping when the accident occurred. The passenger stated that Peterson had been driving the SUV. The driver of the semi stated to the officer that he was traveling behind the red SUV when he observed the vehicle change lanes from the right lane to the left lane at which time it hit the guard rail. The vehicle then spun around, crossed both lanes of traffic and crashed into the right side guardrail and the right side of his semi.
When observing Peterson, the driver of the red SUV, the trooper noted his eyes were red and glazed over. His vehicle had a strong smell of burnt marijuana and, while attempting to find his wallet in the car, the trooper located two pot pipes. Inside the vehicle were two children, sons of the female passenger. The older child was seven years old, the youngest was five years old. The younger boy complained his head was hurting. Neither children were in booster seats. According to Peterson the accident occurred when he reached over to get a bottle of water. Upon further questioning Peterson admitted the pipes were his and that he had smoked marijuana earlier in the day at 11:00 a.m. Peterson failed a field sobriety test, however a preliminary breath test scored 000. He was placed under arrest for operating a vehicle while under the influence of a controlled substance. He was transported to Mile Bluff Medical Center where he agreed he would submit to an evidentiary chemical test of his blood. On November 1st Peterson was placed on a $5,000 signature bond with conditions that he is not to use, possess, or consume any controlled substances without a valid prescription. He is not to be in possession of drug paraphernalia. He is not to drive without a valid drivers license nor is he able to operate a vehicle with minors in it. He will return to court for an initial appearance before Juneau County Circuit Court Judge John Roemer on December 4th.
Delaney found guilty of sexual assault A former Necedah area pastor, Micheal Delaney, more than likely will be spending the rest of his life behind bars in the Wisconsin prison system. Last week in Monroe County Circuit Court at the conclusion of his trial, the 66 year old Tomah man was found guilty of sexual assault with a child under 16 years of age as a persistent repeater and five counts of child enticement. Delaney who has a 1983
conviction in Arizona on two counts of child sexual assault will be sentenced in December. Wisconsin's "Two Strikes You're Out" requires a life prison term upon a second separate child sex offense. The case leading to the second strike was originally filed in the court system in early 2012, months after the young male victim and relatives came forward in late 2011. In late 2011 Delaney retired as Pastor from the
Church of God of Prophecy in Necedah. The abuse Delaney was convicted of happened over a period of time, and according to the original criminal complaint involved using his position of power including teachings of faith to manipulate the victim while assaulting him. When the verdict came in Delaney, who had earned a living working as a truck driver, was immediately taken into custody to await sentencing.
When The Messenger originally broke the story on Delaney being held on possible charges of child sexual assault we placed calls and left messages at the Church of the God of Prophecy headquarters in Tennessee to ascertain whether or not they were aware of Delaney's prior criminal record in Arizona and if they had that information prior to him becoming a pastor in Necedah. Our calls and messages went unanswered.