MADISON, Wis. – Today, Fond du Lac County District Attorney and law enforcement’s choice for Attorney General, Eric Toney, held a press conference outside of the Risser Justice Center to hold Josh Kaul accountable for the number of children whose safety he’s put at risk by allowing a backlog of over 1,000+ child sex predator cases.
Toney released the following statement:
“I filed an open records request last week Thursday directly to Kaul to demand that he immediately release the number of child sex predator referrals that have been received under his watch and when they were assigned for investigation. I then challenged Kaul on his massive backlog of these child sex predator cases during the UPFRONT debate and he didn’t even try to deny this backlog.”
Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) referrals include child sex predators who:
-Possess child pornography
-Obtain nude photos of children over the internet; and
-Coerce children to meet them for the commission of heinous and deviant sexual crimes.
Regarding the ICAC backlog, Washington County Sheriff Martin Schulteis released the following statement:
“The number, frequency, and complexity of ICAC referrals to local law enforcement for child sexual abuse material investigations, commonly referred to as child porn, from the Wisconsin Department of Justice is deeply concerning. In the past, local law enforcement served in a support role in these complex investigations and primary investigators in less complex incidents. During the past year, we have experienced a clear shift to local law enforcement becoming the primary investigative agency in both. We have seen a 250% increase in ICAC referrals from DOJ since last year and it is exponentially taxing our finite local public safety resources. Each one of these cases takes 4-5 months and 250+ investigative hours to hold individuals accountable.”Toney added:
“Based on information I’ve received, as recent as September of this year, Josh Kaul failed to provide proper resources to DCI resulting in a backlog of over 1,000 ICAC referrals – leaving child predators free to roam our streets and putting children at risk. The backlog of ICAC referrals is another example of Josh Kaul’s failed leadership and the apparent dysfunction Kaul has created at the Department of Justice. Our children’s safety is on the ballot in November.”
Retired Dane County Sheriff Gary Hamblin added:
“One of the reasons that I decided to endorse Eric is because he currently has the respect of law enforcement throughout the state. I’m confident that he will develop a very positive and close working relationship with our fellow law enforcement officers around the state – all you have to do is take a look at the list of endorsements that Eric’s received from current sheriffs and prosecutors around the state and you’ll find out that he has the support and the relationship that’s necessary to get the resources to protect our community.” Toney was joined at today’s press conference by retired Dane County Sheriff Gary Hamblin and Dane County Supervisor Jeff Weigand.
District Attorney Eric Toney has endorsements from over 100 Republican and Democrat Sheriffs, District Attorneys, and Police Chiefs, and has been unanimously endorsed by the Wisconsin Fraternal Order of Police State Lodge, the Milwaukee Police Association, the Racine Police Association, the West Allis Professional Police Association, the Waukesha County Chiefs of Police Association, the Racine Deputy Sheriffs’ Association, the Kenosha Professional Police Association, the Wisconsin Troopers Association, and the Milwaukee Police Supervisors Organization.
