FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 11, 2026
CONTACT: info@erictoney.com
Attorney General Debate 2026: Josh Kaul Gives Failing Crime Labs an “A”
Despite audit showing gross mismanagement, denied justice for victims of crime
FOND DU LAC, WI – On this morning’s “UPFRONT” AG Debate, Josh Kaul shockingly gave Wisconsin’s crime labs an “A” grade, despite the nonpartisan audit finding the labs are taking longer to test less evidence, and in need of management fixes. Under Kaul, a hiring freeze was implemented that left critical lab analyst positions vacant and DNA results now take more than twice as long compared to when he took office. These delays deny justice for victims and leave criminals on our streets longer. Eric Toney, Fond du Lac County District Attorney and Republican nominee for Attorney General, released the following statement:
“Josh Kaul gave his crime labs an ‘A.’ Ask any victim of crime in the state if waiting months for justice qualifies as an ‘A.’ Ask the prosecutors and detectives who wait months for a DNA result while a suspect is on our streets. I’ve been a prosecutor for over 13 years, and I’ve watched these delays get worse year after year under Kaul. A nonpartisan audit documented the failure. When the man responsible for the labs can’t admit there’s a problem, he will never fix it. Kaul has had nearly eight years of chances. That’s why I gave Kaul’s inept leadership a ‘F’ grade. Enough is enough. It’s time for change.”
During the debate, Toney also called out Kaul’s excuse that the labs just need more positions. Kaul’s own hiring freeze let lab vacancies pile up. The analyst vacancy rate more than tripled on his watch, from 2.6% in 2019 to 9.5% in 2023, leaving 10 analyst positions empty, DNA analysts dropping from 60 to 53.5 from 2020-2023. That happened even while the Legislature added 13.4 positions for the labs during Kaul’s failed 8 years in office. Kaul’s own top crime lab leaders also collected over $700,000 working for another state’s crime lab while Wisconsin’s backlog grew—and Kaul still hasn’t answered if he or someone from his administration approved that work.
Josh Kaul ran in 2018 on fixing forensic testing. After eight years as Attorney General, his own Department of Justice reports show the labs are slower in many major categories, including DNA. That is despite more staff, better technology, and 29% fewer cases than when he took office. DNA analysis, the evidence in rape kits, homicides, and crimes against children, took a median of 50 days in 2018 and 112 days in 2024. Drug testing went from an average of 43 days to 90. Toxicology went from 37 days to 82. The Legislative Audit Bureau also found that 532 rape kits sent to a private lab took a median of 292 days to come back. Nearly all of them exceeded the six-month limit now required by state law.
As Attorney General, Eric Toney would fix the fundamental problems behind the delays at Wisconsin’s crime labs. He would ensure no hiring freezes occur at our crime labs, immediately move to fill staff vacancies within the labs, end any work-from-home policies that keep analysts out of the labs, and establish clear timelines and formal performance metrics so transparency returns to the DOJ and Justice isn’t denied for victims and criminals are taken off our streets.
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