Minocqua Brewing Company owner Kirk Bangstad has posted a cash bond in Oneida County circuit court after being charged with two misdemeanors — disorderly conduct and bail-jumping — for a disturbance at his Front Street Minocqua location last Friday, June 27, in which six others at the scene were also arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.
The incident was detailed in the July 3, 2025 issue of The Lakeland Times. According to the story:
According to the police report by Minocqua police office Jarrett Radmer, Bangstad engaged in indecent, profane, boisterous, unreasonably loud, and otherwise disorderly conduct as he and others at his establishment hurled profanities at Lakeland Times publisher Gregg Walker as Walker left the newspaper office for the day.
The Times is located across the street near the Minocqua Brewing Company and in full view of the Minocqua Brewing Company. Walker did not respond.
The bail-jumping arises from alleged violations of his bond conditions on a criminal defamation charge Bangstad is facing for publishing a fake photo of Walker and Times’ general manager Heather Holmes in a pornographic rendering. That case is open and, under the terms of the bond in that case, Bangstad is not to commit any crime or to, directly or indirectly, threaten, harass, intimidate, or otherwise interfere with Walker or Holmes. Those conditions also prohibit Bangstad from issuing any threats against Holmes or Walker that would intimidate them as witnesses in that case.
At the June 30 hearing, Oneida County circuit judge Michael Schiek also recused himself from the case — as he did in the criminal defamation case — because of his relationship to the earlier case. A Michigan man allegedly threatened the judge over Bangstad’s criminal defamation arrest.
In this case, Bangstad posted a bond of $1,150. Conviction of the misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge could bring a prison sentence of not more than 90 days or a $1,000 fine, or both. The bail-jumping charge is a more serious conviction which could draw a nine-month prison sentence, a $10,000 fine, or both.
Bangstad was also charged with a harassment forfeiture, a citation. Arrested and charged with disorderly conduct along with Bangstad were Matthew Haugen, Daniel Boggs, Douglas Nelson, Matthew Johnson, Allison Johnson, and Libby Nelson.
