Community Corner

Sussex Patch's Best Read Stories of 2012

As we launch a new year, let's take a look back at the most popular stories on Sussex Patch in 2012.

For the last few days, we've reviewed the biggest crime, education and business stories in Sussex in 2012.

To wrap up our year in review, we're looking at the 10 most popular Sussex stories overall to appear on our site last year. We're excluding political stories and other Milwaukee-area stories that appeared on our site and are focusing exclusively on the Top 10 local stories of the year.

Let's count 'em down!

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10. Undercover Heroin Bust Leads to Arrest of Familiar Faces

A Sussex woman and two men were charged with multiple felonies after they allegedly sold heroin to undercover Waukesha police officers on several occasions since June.

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The three were charged with 13 different drug-related crimes after arranging to sell heroin to undercover police on at least five occasions from June to August.

9. Two Charged in Attempted Bank Robbery

Two people were arrested and charged in connection with a March attempted robbery at the Associated Bank branch. After months of court appearances, both defendants eventually pleaded guilty to reduced misdemeanor charges.

8. Robber Hits Sussex's Associated Bank 

On an early Saturday morning in July, about an hour before the Associated Bank on Main Street and Silver Spring Drive was scheduled to open, a lone man walked into the building and attempted to rob it. Four employees were inside the bank at the time and stayed in a vault in the back of the building. The suspect, who fled on foot, was never apprehended.

7. Live Blog: Sussex Votes in Wisconsin Recall Election

Patch was all over the June gubernatorial recall election and spent Election Day talking to voters and local election officials about turnout, who was voting and why, and much more. In the end, Sussex voters overwhelmingly supported Gov. Scott Walker over Democratic challenger Tom Barrett by a more than 2-to-1 margin. Turnout for the recall election was 77 percent in the village.

6. Woodside Parents Alerted That Sexual Predator Lives Nearby

Hamilton School District officials in November notified parents at Woodside Elementary School that a Hamilton High School student accused of sexual assaulting a 6-year-old girl this summer, lives near their school.

5. Police Investigate 12-Pound Pot Delivery

In November, someone in California mailed 12 pounds of marijuana to a Sussex residence. Tipped off by a postal inspector, the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department launched an investigation into the shipment of pot — the second of its type to be sent to the same address in one week.

4. Teen Accused of Sexual Assault No Longer Attending Hamilton HS

Just days after telling Woodside School parents that a sexual offender was living nearby and attending Hamilton High School, district officials said the 17-year-old was no longer a student at the school — but they didn't say much more than that.

3. Sussex Officials Explain Why They Signed Walker Recall Petitions

In a story that generated dozens of reader comments and nearly 400 votes in an online poll, Patch asked Village President Greg Goetz, two trustees and one Hamilton School Board member why they signed petitions to recall Gov. Scott Walker from office.

2. 24-Year-Old Mom Accused of Having Sex With 13-Year-Old Boy

Even though this story was reported in September 2011, it still was the second-highest read story on Sussex Patch in 2012. In this case, a 24-year-old Sussex mother of three children was charged with felonies after being accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old boy on several occasions in 2010.

1. Hamilton School Board Member Who Misspelled Her Name on Recall Petition Ousted From Office

In yet another recall-related story, Hamilton School Board member Lynn Kristensen caught a lot of heat after it was learned that she incorrectly spelling her name on a petition to recall Gov. Scott Walker from office.

And when the April election rolled around, voters expressed their displeasure at the ballot box — Brian Schneider defeated Kristensen by a more than 2-to-1 margin.


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