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Our Attorney General Highlights His Lifelong Focus on Child Advocacy and Concern for Victims
[WAUKESHA COUNTY, WISC… ] Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel highlights his advocacy on behalf of abused children in his latest campaign ad.
“At the Department of Justice, we partner with local law enforcement to keep communities across the state safe,” said Schimel. “But throughout my nearly 30-years experience as a Wisconsin prosecutor I’ve known that when crimes are committed, it’s imperative we take a compassionate, victim-centered approach in the pursuit of justice.”
The ad tells the story of the The Big Yellow House, which is home to two social service and welfare organizations that assist children in crisis. Brad Schimel helped lead the effort to create the facility in 2006 as a founding member of the Waukesha County Child Advocacy Center Task Force.
“Brad, I think, has always been a very, very strong advocate for the rights and needs of victims of crime,” said Mark Lyday, former Director of Child Advocacy and Protective Services at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin. “These are the most vulnerable victims we have in our society. Brad recognized that early on, and was really a leader locally, and eventually across the state, at developing child advocacy centers.”
Child Advocacy Centers provide a safe, child-focused environment for a trained interviewer to talk to children who have been the victim of a crime. These interviews provide a multidisciplinary team of social workers, medical, and law enforcement personnel valuable information that assists in the prosecution of offenders and begins the process of providing needed trauma-informed care to these young victims. They also provide access to counseling and social welfare services for children. Many, like the Big Yellow House, also have facilities for conducting a compassionate medical examination. The Big Yellow House was the first full-service CAC in Wisconsin.
“Brad really brings the passion and commitment to keep kids safe in a world that can be relatively unsafe,” said Terri Terrill, Executive Director of Family Service of Waukesha.
Brad Schimel’s experience as a prosecutor and victim advocate is unmatched in this race. He’s spent the largest part of his career as a prosecutor in the sensitive crimes unit, protecting children and vulnerable adults and holding predators accountable. During his time in the Waukesha County District Attorney’s Office, Schimel helped establish Waukesha County’s Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) program, which plays an integral role in making sure that in Waukesha County, crime victims, especially those of sexual violence, receive the best possible care. Schimel also served on Waukesha County’s Sexual Assault Review Team and participated in the development of Waukesha County’s Sexual Assault Investigation Protocol. He has been previously awarded “Professional of the Year” by the Wisconsin Association of Victim Witness Professionals for his work on behalf of victims of sexual assault and child abuse.
As our Attorney General, Brad Schimel has continued his victim advocacy, prioritizing the testing of previously unsubmitted sexual assault kits that sat on shelves in law enforcement agencies and hospitals across the state for as long as 20 years. Schimel also hired the state’s first statewide child abuse resource prosecutor and statewide SANE coordinator, fulfilling a promise he made when he ran for Attorney General in 2014. Earlier this year, Attorney General Schimel successfully led the effort to enact legislation that provides greater protections for neglected children.
The digital ad, Schimel’s first since May, will run statewide through the end of August. It is part of a series of online and broadcast commercials the Wisconsin prosecutor plans to run before the November 6 election.
Brad Schimel’s determined, yet compassionate, record on criminal justice has earned him the support of 63 of Wisconsin’s 72 sheriffs, including 12 elected Democrat sheriffs who appreciate the breadth, depth, and nonpartisan nature of the Republican Attorney General’s experience.
The spot can be viewed, here.
