Wisconsin's Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul does not support defunding the police, he said during a WisPolitics event Wednesday.
"Law enforcement is the backbone of our public safety efforts, and we need to provide more funding to law enforcement, not less," Kaul said during the virtual Q&A, adding that such funding increases should come from both the state and federal governments.
Kaul, who is running for reelection this year, noted that the Republicans who control the state Legislature have not taken up a $115 million package of "Safer Wisconsin" bills he introduced with Democratic lawmakers in November.
Included in the proposal are measures that would fund law enforcement training, expand treatment and diversion programs, tighten gun laws and create a hate crime hotline, among other provisions. The efforts would be funded by a portion of the state's estimated $3.8 billion budget surplus.
A former federal prosecutor and voting rights attorney, Kaul defeated Republican former Attorney General Brad Schimel in 2018 by a narrow margin. In November, the Democrat will face the winner of the Aug. 9 Republican primary election: Fond du Lac District Attorney Eric Toney or attorney and former state Rep. Adam Jarchow.
The November election will provide a "clear contrast" for voters, Kaul said, describing the Republican primary as "a competition between the two of them to go as far as possible … to the extreme far right."
Much of Wednesday's discussion reviewed a state Department of Justice-led investigation into sexual abuse committed by faith leaders and clergy in Wisconsin.
The DOJ launched the probe about a year ago, and has since received more than 180 reports, Kaul said. Last month, a Wood County man was charged with one count of first-degree child sexual assault (contact with a child under age 13) for a 2009 incident that occurred at a camp in Waushara. The victim reported the incident for the first time to the DOJ investigation.
Eventually, Kaul said, the DOJ will release a report with its findings, though there is not a timeline for it, as the agency plans to "follow the facts where they lead."
The goals for the investigation include holding abusers and enablers accountable, providing opportunities for victims to heal and preventing further abuse from occurring, Kaul said.
Kaul also discussed Wisconsin's criminal abortion ban, which has been on the books since 1849 but unenforceable since the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling. As the court considers a challenge to a Mississippi law, it appears poised to at least weaken — if not completely overturn — Roe.
In the event Roe is overturned, Kaul said he expects a flood of litigation as parties seek to evaluate the state's existing ban and subsequent laws that have been passed regulating abortion access in Wisconsin.
In the interim, he said, he would discourage district attorneys from enforcing the ban. Even if it were to be ruled enforceable, Kaul said, he doesn't believe doing so would be a good use of prosecutorial resources.
The attorney general spoke similarly of some marijuana-related offenses. While the DOJ has sought to curb abuse of drugs including opioids and methamphetamines, Kaul said he supports the legalization of medical marijuana.
"I think it is safer for people to use medical marijuana than an opioid … and we’ve seen in other states they’ve taken that step without negative consequences to public safety," Kaul said. "The approach we should take should be driven by public safety considerations."
