A bill that would have offered sentence adjustments for crimes committed when the offender was younger than 18 died in the Wisconsin Senate last week. The measure would have applied to people who received sentences of at least 15 years for offenses that didn’t involve a death and to those sentenced to at least 20 years for crimes that did include a death. It also  would have prohibited a life sentence without parole or extended supervision for youth offenders, and required the consideration of mitigating factors, such as age and maturity, at sentencing. The bill failed to gain traction or a public hearing in the Senate because, according to the lead sponsor, Sen. Jesse James (R-Altoona), there was a lack of clarity about the number of residents in prisons who would be affected. 

At a Feb. 12 event held by the criminal justice reform advocacy group WISDOM near Eau Claire, James told the gathering that information he had originally distributed concerning the number of residents who would be eligible for a sentence adjustment was not accurate, and because of that, he would not call for a public hearing on the bill.

In response to a Wisconsin Examiner request for clarification, a staff person in James’ office said in an email message: “After talking to the Senator to help with more context, I think there was a misinterpretation of what he meant. We received data from DOC (Department of Corrections) that does not necessarily match with data that advocacy groups have been circulating to other members of the Legislature. While we do work with advocacy groups on the bill, we did not provide them their data, so we are not 100% sure where they got it from. The discrepancies between the data our office was giving out versus these advocacy groups caused some confusion about how many individuals this bill would actually help. Given the time frame left in the session with the Assembly being done sooner than the Senate, clearing up the confusion and getting a public hearing in either chamber just did not come to fruition in time.”

Nikki Olson, founder and executive director of the Wisconsin Alliance for Youth Justice (WayJ), represents one of those advocacy groups.

“Sen. James was essentially given a range while WayJ has a specific number,” she said. “Our specific number fits into the range, so I consider his data and ours to be accurate.”

She added, “Sen. James was given two numbers. The number of people who will be impacted. A separate number was given of people that may or may not be impacted. There was data overlap between the two numbers. These two numbers combined means 130ish-300ish people would be impacted. Our number of 253, as of the end of 2024, fits within that range. The range represents a snapshot in time during 2025. Our specific number is a snapshot as of the end of 2024. I would anticipate the change between the two snapshot dates to be minimal and still within the range.”

The Examiner reported in December 2025 on a bill that had been in the works since the 2022-23 session addressing the same focus of youth sentencing. One of the advocacy groups that supported that effort, Kids Forward, estimated the number of residents who could be affected was more than100.

From 2021 to 2024, a new report reveals there was a dramatic increase in the number of incarcerated residents of Wisconsin’s jails and prisons accessing medications for opioid use disorder.

“Treatment Behind Bars: Medication for Opioid Use Disorder in Wisconsin’s Jails and Prisons” by the Wisconsin Policy Forum was released Wednesday at a press conference hosted by Vital Strategies Overdose Prevention Program, a global public health organization that has been working since 2018 to use “advanced evidence-based strategies on overdose prevention and to expand access to harm reduction and treatment, particularly for populations at highest risk,” said Giavana Margo, program manager.

The report notes that “medications for opioid use disorder are an important tool to help people manage symptoms of opioid withdrawal, as well as recover from symptoms of active opioid addiction. Research also shows that individuals who are newly released from prison are at elevated risk for overdose fatalities.”

The report said there are three factors that have “likely” resulted in the higher use of opioid use disorder medications  in carceral settings:

1. The high number of opioid deaths in the state that reached a peak in 2024
2. The availability of opioid lawsuit settlement dollars from pharmaceutical companies to address treatment.
3. Federal and professional agencies promoting the medications, and pressure from the U.S. Department of Justice to offer them to carceral residents under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

A fourth factor discussed during the press conference is the higher percentage of jail and prison facilities offering the medications, encouraging wider acceptability.

Jason Stein, president of the Wisconsin Policy Forum, said that even though the number of opioid deaths has dropped noticeably since 2024, the number of overdose deaths statewide is slightly higher than vehicle deaths, making overdoses a “significant public policy issue.”

He noted that of 71 jails in the state, 58 filled out a 42-question survey fully and seven answered partially, resulting in a 97% reporting rate for the jails, while the Department of Corrections (DOC) reported data via its central pharmacy that serves all the state prisons.

The primary two opioid use disorder medications used by facilities are methadone and buprenorphine.

“Both of those medications are associated with a decrease in overdose deaths as well as improvements in other important indicators such as recidivism,” he said.

The study also looked at the use of naltrexone, another medication that is not strictly for opioid use disorder, and it also looked at the prevalence of naloxone or Narcan, which is used to reverse opioid overdoses.

The report notes that only four residents in the DOC system took buprenorphine in 2021, but 148 were receiving it in 2024, and 44 took naltrexone in 2001 — a number  that increased to 154 in 2024.

Stein said a 2021 Department of Health Services (DHS) report showed that only one-third of prisons offered any medication for opioid addiction, but by 2025 all 36 prisons were offering at least one medication.

Currently, Stein said, most Wisconsin jails — 53 of 65 that responded or 81.5% — offer one form of opioid medication. That is more than double the 25 jails, or 41%, that reported at least one medication in 2021.

“It’s more common for jails in the central and southeastern parts of our state to have multiple forms available,” he said of opioid medication. “In northern Wisconsin, it’s typically one form … such as buprenorphine.”

The report notes that offering the medications to those in jails and prisons results in a reduction of overdose deaths after release, as well as a decreased risk of death for any cause and a lower risk of reincarceration.

“We want to note that there is increased availability of these medications in both county jails and prisons around the state, making it available to thousands of individuals in 2024 at a substantial increase from 2021, but at the same time, there are some gaps, meaning access at the county level,” Stein said. “We had eight counties that stated they did not currently provide any access to these medications. We had five more counties that did not answer the survey. There are now 24 counties that provide some access to methadone, but that is still a minority, and we have a number of jails that, while they may provide continuation of existing prescriptions, they do not initiate individuals on those medications.”

He added, “We do see some opportunity … despite the challenges that may exist, to increase access; we do see some tools that local counties can turn to. One, there are more counties and private providers that are offering this service around the state, so there’s the potential for partnership, and then, as well, the availability of opioid settlement funds also makes the possibility of funding this service more practical in some cases for counties.”

Joanna Hernandez of Milwaukee shared her experience of struggling with addiction while incarcerated and the importance of continuing medication.

She recounted being arrested in 2013 in Walworth County while possessing a valid prescription for Suboxone (a medication to treat opioid addiction).

“The jail verified my prescription, but even after confirming it, they refused to give me my medication,” she said. “I was there for five days and went through very severe withdrawal. I was extremely sick and eventually segregated to a single cell. I remember guards telling me, ‘You know, this isn’t a hospital.’ As soon as I was able to post bail and get out, I used immediately. If I had been able to continue my prescription while incarcerated, I could have focused on healing and making sure my mental health medications were the right fit for me. Mental health plays a huge role in withdrawal.”

She added, “Experiences like mine show why access to medications for opiate use disorder is so important. Withdrawal in jail does not treat addiction. It actually increases the risk of relapse and overdose when people are released. Jails and correctional facilities need to treat opiate use disorder like the medical condition it is. Access to medications for opiate use disorder is about dignity, medical care and saving lives.”

Kenosha County Sheriff David Zoerner said an important part of his jail’s intake is an initial screening, so the residents get the resources they need and they also have those resources when they leave.

He noted it was a grant that provided the dollars to do the initial screening, and also stressed the limiting factor on how much his office can do is money, mostly from tax levies.

Zoerner said the most efficient way to offer methadone would be at the jail but he fears methadone could be “diverted nefariously,” so instead those who need it are driven daily to a facility, but that is also costly because it requires a deputy to transport the residents.

“My hope, based on what we’re doing right now with the early screens, is being able to work with the affected population while they’re in our custody, getting them peer support and some need therapy,” he said.  “You understand that drug addiction, behavioral health issues, mental health, they all go hand in hand, so to facilitate that through and then with new legislation, hopefully we’re going to be able to get these folks prescriptions, a 30-day supply, before they leave.”

The new legislation Sheriff Zoerner referred to is AB 604, which passed the Legislature and is waiting for Gov. Tony Evers’ signature. It would allow the state to apply for Medicaid coverage for incarcerated people, including a 30-day supply of opioid medication prior to release.

At the press conference, Adriena Hust, state team leader of Vital Strategies, shared recommendations for expanding opioid use disorder medication access in Wisconsin jails and prisons.

“The first recommendation, incarceration is not treatment,” she said.  “More should be done to avoid reincarceration. Most admissions to prison in Wisconsin are due to supervision and technical violations, rather than a new crime. While reforms are in progress, Vital Strategies recommends that Wisconsin continue to minimize revocation and eliminate incarceration sanctions for drug use while on supervision, considering reoccurring drug use is a common part of substance use treatment. Although today’s study did not deal with the issue of revocations, we know they are costly, and the savings to minimize them can go toward medication and staffing.”

Another recommendation is to make methadone and buprenorphine standard treatments for opioid use disorder.

And she said counseling should be optional and not a condition to receive medication because it is the medication that saves lives.

 “As mentioned, people are at extreme risk of dying by overdose in the first few weeks after leaving carceral settings,” she said. “It is important that re-entry planning focus on seamless continuation of medication in the community, which greatly reduces this mortality risk.”

And she noted that those incarcerated who have a right to medication under the Americans with Disabilities Act should have “recourse against violations without fear of retaliation,” in demanding medication. Lastly, she said, the state and counties should prioritize opioid settlement dollars for “opioid use disorders in jails and prisons.”

The American Birkebeiner “Birkie” cross-country ski races from Cable to Hayward just concluded on Saturday, Feb. 21. It was the 52nd annual running of the marathon races.

The Birkie is part of the Worldloppet Ski Federation, an international association of marathon cross-country ski races held in Europe, the Americas, New Zealand, Australia, China, and Japan.

There were over 600 skiers at the 2026 Birkie who are Worldloppet Ski Federation Passport Members: those who are officially documenting their Worldloppet races to qualify as masters, or those who have skied in 10 Worldloppet races. Many of those Passport skiers are Americans, but they also include several hundred international skiers.

International skiers expressed concern about traveling to the Birkebeiner this year, during the federal immigration crackdown in Minneapolis. American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation Executive Director Ben Popp reported receiving several calls from international skiers prior to the 52nd Birkie after the international skiers had viewed the demonstrations in nearby Minneapolis and videos of Renee Good and Alex Pretti being shot and killed by federal agents. 

Several international skiers who came to Hayward told the Examiner they were very aware of the news coming out of Minneapolis, and there had been some concerns raised, but not enough to keep them from participating in the sport they love.

Thomas Hejek and his wife, Blanca Hajkova of the Czech Republic spoke with the Examiner  on Wednesday, Feb. 18, as Hejek was waiting to ski in an open event on Thursday, and both he and his wife prepared to participate in the marathon races on Saturday.

Hejek has skied in several Worldloppet races, including races in Canada and Japan. Their trip to the Birkie was organized over a month ago, before the shooting of Renee Good.

Hejek said it wasn’t the violence in Minneapolis that caused the most concern for skiers in his country, but rather the overall perception of politics in America.

“We know that most of our friends just don’t want to come right now to the United States, not just because of Minneapolis, but because of the politics,” said Hejek. “But it’s not, it wasn’t a big deal for us, because I think that mostly the people here, around the Birkie and in Hayward and Cable are really lovely and really friendly, because I know it from two years ago, so we didn’t think about not going to the United States.”

He added, “Sometimes, some of my friends were surprised that we were going. But you know, we also in the Czech Republic have a very bad government, and we just have to deal with it, and also the situation in Minneapolis, our friends from the United States were warning us to go directly with plane to Duluth or something, but we just fly to Minneapolis, and took the car and just drive here. We didn’t stay in Minneapolis because we were a little bit scared.”

On Thursday, Feb. 19, Esa Sainio of Finland completed his first Birkie Open marathon race. Recently, he completed a race in Canada and drove from Ottawa to Hayward, and after the Birkie, he intended to ski in Sweden.

“We saw everything that was happening here,” he said of news coming from America, especially out of Minneapolis. “But one of our friends from Minnesota said it wasn’t so bad from there. Everything is not so bad.”

Several skiers spoke with the Examiner on Friday, Feb. 20 at the Worldloppet Foundation Breakfast featuring international skiers.

Epp Paal of Estonia is the CEO of the Worldloppet Ski Foundation. She didn’t think international skiers had concerns about American political upheaval in coming to the 2026 Birkie.

“Do skiers like the current politics of the U.S.? I don’t believe so, but they like the races, and they come to the race itself,” she said. “So I don’t believe that this is something to do with politics. Just love of skiing is bringing them here.”

She added, “I think this Worldloppet is all about love of skiing and friendship. And this drives these people, and they know so many other fellow skiers from the U.S., and many have developed deep friendships here, so it doesn’t really matter for them.”

Jaagup and Janek Vana, two brothers from Tartu, Estonia, said they had not seen much news from Minneapolis before coming, and they didn’t have concerns about politics or immigration. Their biggest concern was whether there would be enough snow for the Birkie races.

“We just hoped they didn’t cancel the races because of snow,” said Jaagup. “The violence didn’t, doesn’t really matter to us. It wasn’t a concern.”

Janek added that because Hayward is a small, rural area, the two brothers didn’t think there would be anything to be concerned about.

Alena Motyckova of the Czech Republic, was scheduled to ski the Birkie Classic, 53K race on Saturday.

“Of course, we watched what was going on,” she said, “but we just flew [into the] Minneapolis airport, and then we got a car and drove up here, so we did not really worry. It did not make us think to even reconsider coming here to the state, but of course, we took it seriously, like the chances of being stopped by immigration, but it went smoothly.”

However, one of the Czech Republic skiers in Motyckova’s original group didn’t receive the required immigration documents and couldn’t attend.

Jan Vondras of the Czech Republic, one of the seven who did make it, said he had emailed Popp and other Birkie staff discussing the journey to Hayward and concerns over immigration.

“Ben said, ‘If you have any troubles with the immigration officers or police, just call me,’ so we were quite OK that we had somebody behind us who could help us, but actually, nothing happened,” said Vondras.

Gerard Agnellet of France, winner of the 2025 men’s Birkie skate, who placed fourth on Saturday, talked to the Examiner via a translator.

“We knew it would be different from past years,” he said, “so we were a little more surprised and concerned about our paperwork to get into the US, but there was no problem at all. It went smoothly as in past years.”

Fabian Stocek of the Czech Republic won the Birkie Classic in 2025 and again on Saturday.

On the ride from Minneapolis airport to Hayward for the Birkie, Stocek said, he passed a Department of Homeland Security vehicle, but he wasn’t worried.

Stocek has lived in the U.S. for seven years and has a good relationship with a host family in the Hayward area who houses him when he competes.

“I think they (his host family) were more concerned about my behalf than I was,” he said. “so I do follow the U.S. news quite a bit, and I think for me it was, they were like, ‘Oh, watch out, they’re checking phones when you get in’ and, and I thought, OK, I mean, I’ve lived in the U.S. for seven years, so I wasn’t as worried.” 

 At the Worldloppet Foundation breakfast, a Swiss skier said he didn’t want to make any comments to the press in case his words were noticed by immigration officials and caused him problems later.

Dan Mitchell of Hayward, who attended the breakfast, said he recently skied in Worldloppet races in France and Germany and noticed that all flights to and in Europe were full, but the flight back from London to O’Hare Airport in Chicago had several empty seats.

“This is in response to the recent arrests of four local community members, which have impacted not only multiple families but also many others throughout the surrounding region. We are demanding details about the nature of the advance notice of federal officers used to notify the Eau Claire (County) Sheriff’s Department, as well as body cam footage from the officers on the scene,” said Gerardo Licon, a member of the advocacy group El Centro de Conexion de Chippewa Valley.

Licon was speaking to a group of roughly 100 at an ICE Out Now! demonstration near the Altoona City Police Department on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 21.

The protest, organized by area Chippewa Valley advocacy groups, was responding  to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detaining four people on Tuesday, Feb. 17.

The coalition is questioning the level of cooperation between local law enforcement, including the Eau Claire County Sheriff’s Department and the city of Altoona Police Department, with ICE, as well as the narrative offered by Eau Claire County Sheriff Dave Riewestahl about what transpired on Feb.17

Riewestahl said in a press release late Feb. 17 that his office was contacted by ICE agents who said they would be at a construction site in the city of Altoona, near the city of Eau Claire, to arrest a suspect who had allegedly assaulted a law enforcement officer.

Riewestahl later told the Examiner the construction site was off 9 Mile Creek Road, just over a quarter mile from the Altoona Elementary School.

The Examiner heard concerns expressed by local residents that the enforcement action occurred in the afternoon, near dismissal time at the school, but in a voicemail to the Examiner, Altoona School Superintendent Dr. Heidi Elopaulos said the school district had heard no concerns.

“The law enforcement activity that occurred in our community on Feb. 17 had no involvement with and no impact on the School District of Altoona,” she said.

After ICE agents attempted to arrest the suspect, Riewestahl said, four individuals fled the construction site, and one was apprehended.

The sheriff said three who fled the scene entered a residence in the town of Washington, confronted a homeowner, then went into the garage and barricaded themselves inside. The homeowner then locked the door between the house and the garage.

Riewestahl said his office was called to address a criminal trespass to a dwelling, and then county deputies requested assistance from  Altoona police.

Upon the request of the homeowner, the sheriff said, his officers entered the home and attempted to gain voluntary compliance with the three individuals in the garage, but when verbal requests failed, the officers used pepperballs, and the three surrendered.

None of the three were charged with criminal trespass, said the sheriff, because the homeowner didn’t want to press charges.

The three individuals were subsequently turned over to ICE agents.

“In talking with ICE, they said they had the authority to take them in custody for immigration activity, so we turned them over to immigration and immigration took all four of those individuals,” Riewestahl told the Examiner.

In January, after ICE agents were spotted  at the Eau Claire County Courthouse, Riewestahl told local media that his department’s policy manual for field services (patrol) and security services (jail) regarding immigration status directs patrol officers not to detain anyone accused of a “civil  violation of federal immigration laws or related civil warrants,” and that the jail is only allowed to hold individuals who have “been charged with a federal crime,” or have been issued “a warrant, affidavit of probable cause or removal order.”

Several at the demonstration said that earlier in the year, both the sheriff’s department and the Altoona Police Department had said they would not cooperate with ICE.

It is not clear if there was any level of cooperation between the two local law enforcement agencies and ICE other than possibly the sheriff allowing ICE to take the three whom local officers had removed from the garage.

Mireya Sigala, another advocate with El Centro, introduced a man she said was the brother of one of the three. The man was not identified, and he spoke in Spanish, which was translated by Licon.

“Thank you so much for the support you’re giving us, the immigrants,” he said. “Supposedly, they’re looking for criminals, but the criminals aren’t working, and our mistake was to go out and work.”

The man said his brother had never committed a crime and did not  owe anyone money.

“I felt terrible when he called and told me, ‘ICE is here, help me,’” he said. “I felt like trash. I felt like impotent that I couldn’t help him. I didn’t know what to do. There was a woman who gave him refuge in the garage, and I really appreciate that. To my understanding, after that they forcefully took them out of there.”

The brother’s version of events of a woman offering “refuge” appears to contradict the sheriff’s version that the homeowner complained of the three people trespassing  in the Town of Washington home.

Licon also said the advocates are challenging the account offered in the Feb. 17 press release and demanded that “a public statement from both Eau Claire sheriff’s office and Altoona Police Department correcting false statements and the narrative that was published on the news stories after the event, accountability and apology for working with ICE after explicitly stating they wouldn’t do that.”

The Examiner reached out to Sheriff Riewestahl for a response.

The organizers of the event, Licon said, are stressing a clear message to local law enforcement that it “exists to serve and protect the communities in which they operate.”

“They (organizers) argue the cooperation with federal immigration officers erodes trust, discourages residents from reporting crimes, and undermines public safety for everyone,” said Licon. “Our message is simple: law enforcement should be focused on protecting local community members. They work for us, not ICE.”

He added, “Public safety depends on trust, and that trust is compromised when local public safety agencies are seen to be actively assisting federal immigration enforcement officers. Given the lack of dignity and the dehumanization that immigration officers and federal agencies have demonstrated across the country toward law-abiding community members, we cannot allow these unaccountable and undertrained federal agents anywhere near our community.”

Licon also said the advocates have a list of three other demands:

* ICE and immigration officers leave Eau Claire County.

* Release any person arrested without a corresponding legal warrant signed by a judge, and a proof of a warrant used for arrest.

* That both the city police and county sheriff respond to records requests, specifically how agencies were notified by ICE, decisions made to collaborate with ICE, and body camera footage.

None of the four detained Feb. 17 were sent to the Eau Claire County Jail. The man who identified himself as the  brother of one of the three taken Feb. 17 said his brother had been taken to “Bloomington,” presumably Bloomington, Minnesota, where federal immigration offices are located.

Denise Bustanante, another advocate, said if the sheriff’s office doesn’t know who ICE was originally intending to arrest, nor the immigration status of those detained on Feb. 17, then it is possible that ICE had detained U.S. citizens.

“For all we know, those four people could be U.S. citizens in ICE detention right now,” she said.

Dang Yang, a resident for 22 years whose parents came as refugees from Laos to the U.S.  in 1979, recounted how a local Hmong man was detained by ICE for over an hour even though the man is a legal citizen.

“On Monday, Jan. 5, a local Hmong man from our community was detained at his place of employment by ICE in Eau Claire,” said Yang. “He was handcuffed; he was questioned, and even after presenting his valid Wisconsin driver’s license to ICE agents, they spent nearly an hour interrogating him. They asked him about his citizenship over and over again. In addition to that, they also attempted to interrogate him about what he knew regarding the whereabouts of any undocumented Hmong community members in the area. He was finally released after the hour-long interrogation. But the arrest is never the point. The arrest is never the point. Because it’s the impact of the intimidation and the impact of the harassment that results in people hiding away, people afraid to go to the grocery store. People are afraid to talk to their neighbors, afraid to speak up when something is wrong, afraid to be seen and deathly afraid to be heard.”

Yang said his parents told him that back in Southeast Asia, they didn’t talk to the police because of fear of intimidation, and now he sees the same type of intimidation being used by ICE.

“Growing up, they would tell me how lucky we were to have police that were relatively helpful, to have a local government that was relatively competent compared to what they had known in their home country,” said Yang, “But today, the echoes of the past return, and we still see numerous examples of federal law enforcement being just as corrupt, just as unaccountable and just as problematic with their interactions, because they could lead to people being disappeared.This is not the exception of what we have seen over the last year. This is the rule. This is why we’re angry when we see law enforcement side by side with ICE. The association itself, without any details, erodes the trust that my parents so desperately sought when they left their homes in Southeast Asia. But me, today, I cannot deny that I’m afraid, but despite that, I refuse to hide away.”

State Rep.  Christian Phelps (D-Eau Claire) expressed  his support for the local immigrant community saying, “Nobody in the Chippewa Valley ever has to prove their humanity in order to deserve to be safe in our community.”

He added, “I just want to thank you all for the courage that you are demonstrating, leaning into our long and storied history here of true working-class solidarity. Courage is contagious when you demonstrate it by standing up for all of our neighbors, including our immigrant neighbors. You are sharing that courage with the people around you, and while we have that long history of working-class solidarity, ICE is not some time-honored institution with this storied history in the Chippewa Valley. It is less than 30 years old, and it serves no purpose other than to be the sharp and violent edge of Trump’s fascism and authoritarianism, and so I am only here to say, I see you, I hear you, I appreciate you. I encourage you to continue.”

This story was updated at 10:04 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 23.

This story was updated at 10 a.m. Wedensday with comments from Sheriff Riewestahl

Eau Claire County Sheriff Dave Riewestahl announced Tuesday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents had detained four individuals, including one at a construction site in the city of Altoona and three others who fled and barricaded themselves in a garage in the town of Washington.

Riewestahl said his office was contacted by ICE agents who said they would be at a construction site in the city of Altoona, near the city of Eau Claire, to arrest a suspect who had allegedly assaulted a law enforcement officer.

After agents attempted  to arrest the suspect, Riewestahl said four individuals fled the site, and one was apprehended. The sheriff did not specify if the individual detained was the individual ICE was seeking.

The three who fled the scene entered a residence in the town of Washington, confronted a homeowner, then went into the garage. The homeowner then locked the door between the house and the garage.

Riewestahl said his office was called to address a criminal trespass to a dwelling, and then county deputies requested assistance by the city of Altoona police.

Upon the request of the homeowner, the sheriff said, his officers entered the home and attempted to gain voluntary compliance with the three individuals in the garage, but when verbal requests failed, the officers used pepperballs and the three surrendered.

Riewestahl said the three individuals who had trespassed at the town of Washington home were turned over to ICE agents. None of the four taken into ICE’s custody were detained at the Eau Claire County Jail.

“The reason the three were not detained locally is because the homeowner did not want to pursue criminal charges,” the sheriff told the Examiner. “So we did not do that. In talking with ICE, they said they had the authority to take them in custody for immigration activity, so we turned them over to immigration and immigration took all four of those individuals.”

Local officials from Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin spoke to the crowd gathered for the  11th annual Memorial March for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives (MMIWR) on Valentine’s Day  in Duluth.

The movement to address the scourge of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls started in Canada 35 years ago on Valentine’s Day. Later, missing and murdered men and relatives were added.

Held at the American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO), the event featured proclamations from both the cities.

Duluth’s proclamation noted that Native American women face murder rates 10 times the national average and that the “Minnesota MMIWR Task force reports that indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people are more likely to experience violence, be murdered or go missing compared to other demographic groups in Minnesota.”

Superior Mayor Jim Paine said because his wife and daughters are Alaskan natives, he is personally  invested in addressing the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

He described attending the State of The Tribes address by Nicole Boyd, chair of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Feb. 10.

“The only time she broke down in that speech, the only time she wavered at all, was talking about Native women and girls and the fact that too many of them are missing, too many of them have been murdered, and the mission to save them, to protect them, to remember them,” he said.

Paine added,  “We’re doing a lot more this year than last, but that work continues today, and every single day of the year, obviously, like you, the Native women in my life are the most important part of my life, I am deeply grateful for everything that they do for me, and I would do anything to protect them, like all of you, and that means on days like today, we have to speak as loudly and as clearly that the Native women that are in our lives, that are here. We love you. We will protect you. We will do anything for you. To the Native women that are missing, we will never stop looking for you, and to those that have truly been lost or have walked on, we will remember and protect and treat your legacy and memory with the safety that you didn’t have in life.”

Jana Williams, a member of the Leech Lake Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in Minnesota, talked about the alleged failure of the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) to investigate the death of her niece, Allison Lussier, a member of the Red Lake Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in Minnesota, whose body was discovered in February 2024 in her apartment. No death investigation was conducted, Williams said, even though Lussier had contacted the police to report abuse by her boyfriend.

“If you know Allison’s story, you know this, MPD saw an indigenous woman,” said Williams. “They saw drug paraphernalia in her apartment and around her body, a staged scene. And instead of following their own protocol, a supervisor intentionally called off the crime scene. … That one decision destroyed every piece of evidence that could have brought justice to her name.” According to Williams, community members reported that her niece’s killer bragged about her murder. Because of Williams’ activism, the Minneapolis City Council has requested an independent investigation of the case. 

“Who is going to fight for you if we do not stand together?” Williams  asked the crowd. “We are less than 2% of the population. We cannot afford to be divided. We must stand as one.”

Rene Goodrich. organizer of the event, noted the official Minnesota Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives (MMIR) office in Minnesota, founded in 2019,  the only state office in America officially focused on the issue, served 25 families in 2025 and was involved in eight new cases, including four that were resolved in the Duluth area with three being safely found.

Goodrich also noted the state’s MMIR office has a reward fund, up to $10,000 per person, that was inspired by a city of Duluth reward fund, the first in the nation, called Gaagige Mikwendaagoziwag or “They will be remembered forever.”

Late in the meeting, relatives and friends held posters and said the names of missing or murdered people, including Sheila St. Clair, missing since 2015, Nevah Kingbird, missing since 2021 and Peter Martin, missing since 2024. Others held symbolic red dresses.

After a drum dance, about 100 people gathered on the street with posters, banners and dresses and marched to  the Building for Women where the marchers released tobacco they were carrying into a sacred fire, a tradition for seeking a blessing. 

Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled Jana Williams’ name. We regret the error.

The starting line at the 2024 American Birkebeiner ski race in Cable, Wisconsin | Photo by Frank Zufall/Wisconsin Examiner

The 52nd American Birkebeiner, “Birkie,” cross-country ski race between Cable and Hayward, Wisconsin, is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 21, featuring thousands of skiers from across the United States and several hundred from 16 foreign countries, including  Norway, France, Finland and Germany.

However, according to American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation Executive Director Ben Popp several international participants have called the Birkebeiner office in Hayward to express concerns after the federal immigration crackdown in Minnesota  and the death of Minneapolis residents Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were both shot by federal immigration agents.

The Birkebeiner course in northwestern Wisconsin is close to the Minneapolis-St. Paul international airport. So far, Popp said, the Birkie doesn’t know if any foreign skiers have canceled their plans to attend the upcoming race, the largest cross-country/Nordic ski race in North America.

“We had people say, ‘Is it safe to fly into Minneapolis?’” said Popp. “I mean it’s no secret, globally speaking, people are looking at the United States in a very different light these days, especially if you’re a foreigner.”

He added, “it’s predominantly people asking questions like, ‘Is it safe to fly to Minneapolis? What’s it like? Should I still come?’ You know, those are kind of the questions I think we’re getting from the foreigners. And, you know, a lot of those are pretty savvy travelers. Typically, it’s like this is not their first international trip.”

Popp said a skier from Slovenia wanted a contract number with the Birkie in case the skier was stopped by immigration officers and questioned why he was in the U.S..

“So those are legitimate questions we’re getting and encouraging them to come,” Popp said. “And certainly there are some crazy things going on, but we think it’s safe to fly into Minneapolis and get to the Northwoods.” 

The Birkie will be able to assess how many skiers  canceled their trips after organizers see  who doesn’t participate in the 50K ski or the 53K classic events. 

“I think there’s certainly an economic impact that can happen if they don’t come,” said Popp. “But, you know, we’re trying to reassure them that we think it is safe to travel, you know, through Minneapolis.”

International tourism to the United States reportedly dropped dramatically  after President Donald Trump took office on January 21, 2025, and voiced an “American First” policy emphasizing a crackdown on immigrants, suspension of foreign visa programs and a tougher foreign-policy and trade stance toward other nations.

Images and videos of ICE officers breaking car windows and dragging people out of their homes, some of whom were immigrants who legally reside in the U.S., as well as the shooting deaths of U.S. citizens Good and Pretti, haven’t played well for international travelers considering visiting the U.S.