In new ads, two Wisconsin sheriffs defend AG Schimel's handling of sex assault evidence kits

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

MADISON - Two Wisconsin law enforcement officers are defending Attorney General Brad Schimel and his handling of the state's rape kit testing backlog in new campaign ads released by a national Republican organization.

Brown County Sheriff John Gossage and Eau Claire County Sheriff Ron Cramer appear in a five-figure digital ad buy by the Republican Attorneys General Association. In it, they praise Schimel, who has been accused by opponent Josh Kaul and other Democrats of failing to prioritize the testing of sexual assault evidence kits, both as a local prosecutor and attorney general.

"Brad Schimel took action on the backlog of the rape kits and got results," Cramer says in the ad.

And Gossage says, "When Brad found out there was an issue with a backlog in testing, he acted immediately and got additional staff working on this to take care of the problem."

The sheriffs' messages embrace a label Schimel has previously fought against. Schimel in 2017 repeatedly said there was no "backlog" because the thousands of untested evidence kits had been sitting at law enforcement offices and in hospitals rather than piling up at the Department of Justice.

He said the department immediately began to seek analysis once grant funding could be secured as soon as all untested kids were identified.

"I do disagree with the term backlog because the Wisconsin crime lab is up to date with all current, pending investigations," Schimel said in an April, 9, 2017, interview on WISN's "UpFront with Mike Gousha." "It’s not a backlog. These are things no one ever asked the state crime lab to test."

Democrats, including Kaul, have accused Schimel of moving too slowly in testing the kits — funding for which was secured in 2015. Testing began in 2016 at the Department of Justice crime lab and has since expanded to contracted private labs.

"I think our AG should prioritize this issue on day one because what it means is that survivors who had the courage to come forward have had to wait longer than they should for justice and offenders who have committed serious offenses have remained on the streets when they should be in jail," Kaul said in May.

As of May, 1,884 kits — or fewer than half of the total number needing analysis — had been tested. Schimel has said he cannot speed the pace of testing because of the cost and the limited number of labs available.

Schimel has vowed to complete the testing by the end of 2018.

Meanwhile, the Republican Attorneys General Association also is releasing ads featuring Waukesha County Sheriff Eric Severson and Cramer touting Schimel's program offering safety grants to Wisconsin schools.

Earlier this year, Gov. Scott Walker called on lawmakers to pass legislation that provided Schimel with $100 million in grant funding to distribute to schools demonstrating a need for security upgrades.

The legislation was introduced in the wake of the Feb. 14 shooting at a Parkland, Fla., high school.

Scott Will, the association's executive director, said the organization chose to focus on school safety grants and the sexual assault evidence kit issue because they are challenging issues Schimel has addressed in "aggressive and swift" ways.

The ads will run for two weeks, according to the group.