FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
CONTACT: info@erictoney.com
Eric Toney Releases Plan to Add Crime Fighting Resources for Milwaukee County and Wisconsin
A safer Milwaukee means a safer Wisconsin
MILWAUKEE – Fond du Lac County District Attorney and Republican candidate for Attorney General Eric Toney today announced a plan to put state assistant attorney generals on the front lines in Milwaukee and across Wisconsin. District Attorney Toney was joined by the Milwaukee Police Association, as well as sheriffs and district attorneys from across southeast Wisconsin. Under the plan, the Wisconsin Department of Justice will seek to have assistant attorneys general (AAG) partner with federal prosecutors by becoming Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys (SAUSA), allowing them to coordinate with local law enforcement and district attorneys to help prosecute crimes in federal court. This includes gun crimes, human trafficking, drug crimes, and child exploitation.
“As a prosecutor in a county near Milwaukee, I’ve seen crime spill out into the rest of the state. Public safety isn’t a partisan issue – I’ll work with anyone to make sure that Milwaukee and all of Wisconsin has the crime fighting resources to crack down on violent crime,” said Eric Toney in a statement. “I’ve been a prosecutor for over 13 years. I know what happens when caseloads pile up, court calendars become congested, with repeat offenders remaining on our streets, and victims that wait years for justice. We know our Wisconsin assistant attorney generals have greater caseload capacity to do more. I’m going to make sure our Department of Justice does its part to fight violent crime. As Attorney General, I’ll work with the US Attorneys Office – like we’ve seen in Virginia and Missouri – to have our AAGs federally recognized as SAUSAs to prosecute gun crime, drug crime, human trafficking, and child exploitation from Milwaukee and across Wisconsin in federal court through a coordinated effort with local law enforcement and district attorneys. We’ll put resources into Milwaukee and across Wisconsin to help carry the load and make sure that the state is doing its part to fight violent crime and get justice for victims.”
As Attorney General, Toney will:
- Seek to have Assistant Attorneys Generals partner with the federal DOJ to serve as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys, giving them the ability to help combat crime in Milwaukee County and Wisconsin in federal court while working hand-in-hand with local prosecutors on gun crimes, human trafficking, drug crimes, and child exploitation.
- This could help balance caseloads and assist with congestion in state court to make sure that local prosecutors and courts see relief. Some WI DOJ AAGs currently have less than 15 open criminal cases while local prosecutors in counties around the state often carry caseloads in the hundreds.
- More Assistance to Rural Counties. Federal courts are primarily in Milwaukee and Madison, which are closer to many state AAGs in the Madison area. This has made it difficult, costly, and time consuming for rural counties to obtain assistance from our state DOJ.
- Publish results, reporting caseloads, charging decisions, and outcomes so Wisconsinites can hold the DOJ accountable.
- This is in addition to fixing the forensic testing at our crime labs to get evidence to law enforcement and prosecutors sooner to get criminals off our streets more quickly and justice for victims.
Josh Kaul has called public safety his “top priority,” and Kaul has tried to blame Eric Toney for crime in Fond du Lac. But under Kaul’s leadership, murders in Milwaukee are up 43.4%, from 99 in 2018 to 142 in 2025, according to FBI data. Statewide, murders are up 33.5%, and assaults on law enforcement officers have nearly doubled, up 87.9%. (Sources: 2018 figures: FBI Table 8, Milwaukee; FBI Table 5, Wisconsin; FBI LEOKA 2018, Officers Assaulted. 2025 figures: FBI Crime Data Explorer, Documents & Downloads: Table 8 for Milwaukee, CIUS Table 5 for the state, and the LEOKA Assault Map for officer assaults.)
As a past president of the Wisconsin District Attorneys Association, Toney worked with a Republican Legislature and a Democratic Governor to secure increased resources for prosecutors and public defenders, more crime lab positions, internet crimes against children resources, and more than 50 new prosecutor positions where the need was greatest, including Milwaukee County.
“I know how to work across the aisle to get things done, and I’ll work with anyone who wants a safer Milwaukee – Republican, Democrat, or Independent,” said Toney. “Public safety shouldn’t be political. We need to deliver results for the people of Milwaukee, and the rest of the state will be safer as a result.”
District Attorney Toney was joined in support at the announcement by Milwaukee Police Association President Alex Ayala, Ozaukee County Sheriff Christy Knowles, Washington County Sheriff Marty Schulteis, Dodge County District Attorney Andrea Will, Waukesha County District Attorney Lesli Boese, and Washington County District Attorney Barry Braatz.
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