Meeting to Discuss Mark Staskal's Move to Eau Claire

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Posted: 11:28 AM Nov 5, 2007
Last Updated: 6:33 PM Nov 5, 2007

7 comments

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A man living in the neighborhood where the state is about to place Mark Staskal is holding a meeting Monday night.

Neighbors say they hope this meeting will be for their community only, to discuss the information and concerns.

Staskal is the man who murdered his sister near Janesville in 1984, but was found not guilty because of mental illness. He's going to end up at the Bernice and Genevieve group home on Woodcrest Court.

Neighbors are also petitioning against Staskal's placement saying the staff at the group home can't handle Staskal, that he poses a threat to people in the area, and they stand to lose property value.

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Comments are posted from viewers like you and do not always reflect the views of this station.

Posted by: Leave the guy alone Location: Eau Claire on Nov 6, 2007 at 07:54 AM
If the placement would have been in the downtown area, say Hobart area, there wouldn't be such a problem. I doubt the people from the southside would care at all about who was being placed on that side of town. LEAVE THE MAN ALONE!!!!

Posted by: Amanda Location: Eau Claire on Nov 5, 2007 at 10:14 PM
I am in complete agreement with Staskal being kept out of our community. As a resident of the south side of EC, I think it is ridiculous that this subject has been handled so lightly. The day he decided to commit murder was the day he lost his rights to freedom. He needs to be in a facility that is capable of handling him. Does anyone know how to go about signing the petition that has been started against him? Myself and others would love to sign it, but aren't sure who to speak with to do so. Thanks.

Posted by: sandy Location: eau claire on Nov 5, 2007 at 08:51 PM
I do not belive staskal should be put in the group home.I think the judge needs to review the case a little more.Working in the field of disabilities, I have seen people with disabilities leading happy lives in the community.But these people did not kill someone. Some people think they can change people, by living outside an institution, and that does not always work.If the judge can't find a place near Mendota,then staskal should not be released. Or the judge should agree to let staskal live with him for awhile.The parents petitioned to have him not released.Our senators and representatives should be taking this more seriously. I haven't seen one voice his support in sending staskal back. This brings back some memories of a David Spanbauer.He was released after killing a person and ended up killing a little girl. Also, the movie Halloween comes to mind. I hope the meeting goes well and some solutions can be found.It sounds to me that some people just want to rid them selves of a demon

Posted by: Give me a break. Location: Eau Claire on Nov 5, 2007 at 07:03 PM
Has anyone from the community been to the house? Has anyone actually met with the staff of the group home? How come when it opened in March there were no concerns at that time but now there are. How do we not know that one of the other residents of the group home is not in the same type of situation as Staskal. People are making a big deal out of nothing. He has been in Mendota for over 20 years. With this amount of publicity on him and people trying to take his freedom away is only going to cause him to break down. If we were all to just let it be and just keep a close eye on him there would not be such a big deal. There are tons of people in our community that are committing crimes. Heck I would be more worried about the meth cook going on in a neighborhood then this guy.Or the sex offender that is out in the community that has no type of supervision that is able to live next to a school.At least Skaskal is being monitored 24/7 and can't be without staff members or be in jai.

Posted by: Discusted Location: Eau Claire on Nov 5, 2007 at 06:54 PM
Why not just keep him where he has been living? When Mr. Staskal is put in a less secure place thats giving him more opportunity to be violent again... Why cause more problems here..???

Posted by: Anonymous on Nov 5, 2007 at 06:24 PM
I hope the meeting goes well, and they can come to their senses of not bringing a maniac into Eau Claire!

Posted by: upset Location: Eau Claire on Nov 5, 2007 at 05:35 PM
The people of this neighborhood are taking a proactive stance in keeping their neighborhood safe. The group home can't begin to meet the needs of Mr. Staskal; it upsets me they presume they can do so with their present level of minimal staffing and the four clients they already have. There are so many group home agencies who do an excellent job of providing for people with disabilities, and they are willing to acknowledge when the needs of an individual are beyond what they can handle. This is particularly true when you have one staff for 4 to 5 people with disabilities. In addition, an agency with only one group home and the agency owners as staff obviously has no support system in place, in the event that something does go wrong. I wish this neighborhood success in keeping this particular group home from getting in far over its head, and endangering all those who live around them. This is not the way to transition an individual such as Staskal out of Mendota, if he even should be.

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