Dunn County Sheriff signs ICE agreement for the Warrant Service Officer Program

Based on legal advice from the attorney who represents Dunn County’s liability insurance carrier, Wisconsin County Mutual, Sheriff Kevin Bygd signed a Memorandum of Agreement to allow selected staff members to be trained as Warrant Service Officers.

Under this program, Dunn County Sheriff’s Deputies are authorized only to serve federal detainers on individuals who are already in custody at the Dunn County Jail on local criminal charges. This agreement does not grant deputies authority to enforce federal immigration laws or to participate in immigration enforcement activities such as arresting individuals based solely on suspected immigration status.

The purpose of the agreement is to provide limited liability protection when holding an individual in our custody for up to 48 hours on a federal detainer after local charges have been resolved. In instances where we have encountered individuals with federal detainers, those individuals typically had significant criminal histories, and the detainers were associated with serious offenses.

Dunn County Deputies encounter non-citizens on a regular basis and, when appropriate, may arrest or cite individuals for violations of state or local law — just as they would with any other person. We do not contact federal authorities for every interaction involving a non-citizen, nor do we have authority to independently enforce federal immigration laws.

On average, the Dunn County Jail encounters approximately one individual per year who has a federal detainer, despite regularly housing non-citizens. Last year, we encountered two individuals with federal detainers. One individual was sentenced to prison on local felony charges, and the detainer followed him to state prison. In the other case, the individual was arrested on local charges, and the federal detainer was withdrawn before those charges were resolved and he was released from jail once the local charges were resolved.

I hope this clarifies any misinformation that may be circulating.

Sheriff Kevin Bygd

News Release - Ice Agreement 03-02-26.pdf

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Dunn County Sheriff Investigators Present About the Role of Genetic Genealogy at State Conference | 50-Year Cold Case Homicide

Dunn County was highlighted this week at the Wisconsin Sheriffs and Deputy Sheriff’s Association (WSDSA) Annual Training Conference as investigators presented “The Long Road to Justice”, a training session about the growing role of genetic genealogy in solving cold cases, as well as the power of collaboration between law enforcement and academic institutions in pursuit of justice.

The course was presented by Investigations Unit Sergeant Jason Stalker, Investigator Dan Westlund, and Cairenn Binder, Assistant Director of the Ramapo

College Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center and Founding Partner, Coast to Coast Genetic Genealogy Service

On November 5, 2024, 84-year-old-Jon K. Miller was arrested in Minnesota by Dunn County Sheriff’s Investigators and charged with murder in relation to the 1974 homicide of 26-year-old Mary Schlais after a 50-year investigation that spanned across several states, hundreds of interviews, and countless hours of investigation and collaboration with other agencies.

Pictured at WSDSA (L to R) Sgt. Jason Stalker, Investigator Westlund, Cairenn Binder, and Dunn County Sheriff Kevin Bygd.

Dunn Deputy's Traffic Stop Leads to Burglary Arrest and Seizure of Stolen Property

On December 24th, 2025 the Sheriff’s Office received a complaint of a burglary to a residence in the Township of Eau Galle. The homeowner advised that forced entry was made to his residence in a 2.5 hour time period when he was gone. During this investigation information was gathered of a suspicious vehicle entering the driveway of two other occupied residences in the area.

On December 26th we received another report of a residential burglary to a residence in the Township of Spring Brook. It was determined that entry to this residence occurred on December 24th, 2025. During this time a suspect and suspect vehicle was developed in both burglaries.

On December 27th, 2025 a Dunn County Deputy initiated a traffic stop on the suspect vehicle in the Township of Rock Creek, in Dunn County. As a result of this stop 61 year old William E. Ziemer of rural Pepin County was taken into custody on criminal traffic charges. He was operating a red 2016 Chrysler 300. During the stop property believed to be associated with one of the burglaries was observed in plain view. The vehicle was seized and transported to the Sheriff’s Office impound. During an inventory of the vehicles’ contents other items were identified from the previously known burglaries.

Other items were also located that may not belong to the suspect. If anyone has observed any suspicious activity involving the suspect vehicle or is missing any items of value from the December 24th, 2025 time period please contact the Sheriff’s Office

or anonymously through the Dunn County Crime Stoppers Program.

Ziemer is currently being held at the Dunn County Jail on a $25,000 cash bond. He is also on Federal Probation out of the US Probation Office for the Western District of Wisconsin.