Wisconsin A-G, D.A. group pushes for crime lab funding

(The Center Square) — Both Wisconsin’s attorney general and the man who ran against him last fall say lawmakers need to spend more money on the state’s crime lab.

AG Josh Kaul and Fond du Lac County District Attorney and former Republican AG candidate Eric Toney on Tuesday told reporters that the crime lab needs more people to keep up with a flood of new cases.

“Making these investments can help ensure that our crime lab continues to play the vital role it does in the justice system, to ensure that evidence is being tested efficiently, and that we are doing as much as we can for public safety.”

Kaul and Toney want four new toxicologist positions, 10 additional DNA analysts, and two additional crime scene responders.

In all, the total comes to just over $2 million in the new state budget.

Toney said prosecutors and investigators want Wisconsin’s crime labs to be as well rounded and well staffed as possible.

“There’s no doubt that the crime labs in Wisconsin are critical to public safety,” Toney said. “So from a prosecutor’s perspective, we would love to see additional resources to our state crime labs.”

Wisconsin’s crime labs were a key issue in last fall’s election, with Toney calling Kaul’s management there an abysmal failure.

On Tuesday, Kaul said lawmakers understand the need for more resources at the crime labs to better close cases.

“There’s a direct relationship between our having the resources we need, and how efficiently we can test evidence,” Kaul said. “And so, if you’re understaffed, it’s going to take longer to turn samples around.”

Kaul said he’s spoken to every member of the budget-writing Joint Finance Committee, but didn’t say just how much support the legislature is willing to offer.