AG Candidate Sets Sights on Pushers

Brad Schimel

A week after Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced that he would not seek a third term in office last October, Waukesha County District Attorney Brad Schimel threw his hat in the ring as a Republican candidate. That was almost exactly six months ago, and since then Schimel has been on a roll through the state.

“We’re working a 72-county race and I’ve gotten to 47 now. We are really hitting it,” he said in a recent telephone call in honor of his keynote speech at the April 25 annual Lincoln Day Dinner for the Door County Republican Party. He expects Door County will be his 50th of 72 counties visited.

“I hadn’t planned on this for my life,” he said. “I was surprised as anybody when the current attorney general announced he wasn’t going to seek re-election, but I moved very fast. I recognized we needed a strong, experienced, conservative attorney general who is going to enforce the laws of Wisconsin the way they are written.”

Just weeks before announcing he would not seek a third term, Attorney General Van Hollen announced a statewide public awareness campaign designed to combat a growing heroin epidemic (theflyeffect.com).

Schimel wants to step that up.

“Everywhere I go, I hear the same concerns about heroin and other opiates. This is an incredible problem. In 24 years (as a prosecutor), I’ve never seen anything like this,” Schimel said. “Other drug problems, we have been able to enforce our way out of them. On this one, enforcement alone won’t do the trick. There are very strong opportunities for the attorney general to use the pulpit of that office to make a difference.”

And making the difference is treatment for addicts and stiff sentences for pushers, Schimel said.

“We have to work hard to convict those who are responsible for distributing the drugs. Get ’em locked up. The message has to be that if you get involved delivering these drugs, you’re going to get a long sentence. We have to make that risk as bad as possible for the dealers, who do make a calculated decision whether they’re going to commit this crime or not. They do balance risks, unlike the addicted. They’re not making the decisions rationally anymore. They are just driven by their addiction.”

But, he adds, it will mean getting the medical community to become a partner in education.

“At first I was really surprised about how little information the medical community has about what’s happening out on the street,” Schimel said. “The doctors I’ve talked to didn’t know that the reason we have this heroin problem is because the prescription drugs are being diverted out on the street. Young people start popping those pills. Next thing you know they’re snorting them, and injecting them. When the pills become hard to get, they’re turning to heroin because it’s available. So we’ve got to make the medical community our partners in this.”

Schimel said he also wants to carry on Van Hollen’s bonds with local law enforcement.

“Attorney General Van Hollen has made a dramatic change between the Department of Justice and local law enforcement,” he said. “I’ve been doing this a long time and I’ve never seen a relationship near this close. That’s been great for everyone. The Department of Justice, when they are a trusted partner, can be a great resource for those of us on the frontline. That will continue. I will continue to grow that relationship.”

As the only declared Republican for the position, Schimel said he is happy to focus on winning the race rather than raising money for a primary fight. Three Democrats have entered the race (see sidebar), but Schimel said he is confident his experience will put him over the top.

“I’ve got 24 years as a frontline prosecutor,” he said. “I’ve done over 150 jury trials. I have the experience that puts me in the best position to lead the law enforcement community. I’ve got three opponents who say they have experience in prosecution and together they have less than 20 years. There’s a very strong distinction.”

Tickets for the Lincoln Day Dinner at the Sturgeon Bay Yacht Club are $25. Social hour begins at 6 pm and a fish buffet will follow at 7 pm. For reservations contact dinner chair Greg Miller at 743.4623 or party chair Bill Berglund at 824.5763.