Public Safety and Justice

Everyone should feel safe in their communities, including the schools we send our children to and the places where we shop and worship, which is why I support our local police departments.

 

I have seen first hand how complicated the situations that first responders are called to can be while participating in ride-alongs with several police departments from our district and taking part in the Milwaukee Police Citizen Academy.

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Cities have had the rug pulled out from under them by Republican Leadership with a bias against Milwaukee County in the state legislature through budget cuts across all local services including reductions in public safety services and personnel for over a decade. I have always fought against reducing the shared revenue that the state historically returned to local governments to fund these programs, and will continue to work towards restoring that lifeline. Residents of our district have paid their taxes, and they deserve to get their fair share back!

 

To ensure that justice is not delayed, we must address the backlog of cases in our County Court system, which is why I support adding additional courts and expanding the courts’ hours of operations. Justice deferred is justice denied, and so we must make sure that our courts have the resources they require to serve their essential role in our community.

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One of my ideas is to establish a circuit court that will focus on reckless and drunk driving, car theft, and other traffic-related violations. This will help address one of the most significant safety issues facing our region.

 

I am proud to support the Safer Wisconsin Package that Attorney General Josh Kaul has proposed, which includes significant investments in community policing, violence prevention programs, victim services, and programs to reduce recidivism, as well as the $34 million that Governor Evers has invested for criminal justice, community safety and court programs in Milwaukee County.

 

I have long been a supporter of reasonable gun safety legislation. I support responsible gun owners’ rights to keep and bear arms, but I also believe that we must take actions to prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands, and to protect our communities from gun violence. Some policies that will help are to institute universal background checks, restore the 48 hour waiting period, authorize extreme risk protection orders, and eliminate straw purchases.

 

Bills that I support would help police departments provide their officers with the highest quality of training, to make sure that they have the tools and skills to respond to sensitive and often very complex situations.