Susan Crawford, Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate, distributed to Democrats, defended in a debate against conservative candidate Brad Simel on Wednesday night Her decision Tax reductions will be made on pedophiles who repeatedly sexually assault a 5-year-old girl.
The argument was preceded by and was the only one before the April 1 election between Dane County Judge Crawford and former Wisconsin Attorney General and current Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Schimel. Marquette University Law School's ABC Affiliate WISN 12.
The race continues to a blow out 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election. Liberal Janet Protesiewitz defeated conservative candidate Dan Kelly, bringing the court's balance into a 4-3 majority liberal. Conservatives have the opportunity to regain the majority again. retirement Liberal Justice Anne Walsh Bradley's Democrats see this fight as an opportunity to drive policy and redraw legislative maps that could ultimately lose Republicans. Help Democrats are approaching a slim majority of Republicans.
Related: Exclusive – Wisconsin Eye: State Supreme Court Competition that can make Trump's agenda a halt to screech
During the discussion, candidates were asked about attack ads that were aired to each other by swiping through each other's judicial records. The moderator asked Crawford about a 2020 sexual assault case in which perpetrators declared less prison time than prosecutors had requested.
“In 2020, after prosecutors demanded 10, they sentenced a child sex offender to four years in prison. Do you regret that sentence?” the moderator asked Crawford.
“I don't regret that sentence because, as always, I followed the law in that case,” Crawford replied. “I applied the law. The judge says that all the relevant factors of the sentence must be considered. You must consider both the aggravation and mitigation factors, and the Supreme Court said that you need to order the minimum prison time you think is necessary to protect your citizens. That's what I did in that case and all other cases.”
“And my goal is to keep the community safe at all times, and those are successful statements and kept the community safe,” she said. “Unlike the short prison sentences that Brad Simel has come in again and again, where people commit new crimes, that's when you know that your sentence has failed.”
The moderator turned to Simel to ask about his record in handling the tests of thousands of sexual assault evidence kits, one of Crawford's campaign's main offensive lines. Democrats Claim He delayed testing the kit for two years since being elected in 2015, but he Finally It secured a $4 million federal grant and facilitated testing of 4,150 kits by 2018.
“Some of the ads people saw about you were judge Schimel, nine rape kits tested as attorney general in your first two years. Do you regret it?” the moderator asked.
Schimel used his reply time to use Slam Crawford on how he handled a child sexual assault case.
“My opponents have revealed the issue in her judgment: it weighs more than just weighing all the factors, giving dangerous offenders minimal time and protecting the community,” Simel said. “That's what she revealed.”
“That's not what I said,” Crawford said. “court You must order the necessary statements to protect the community. That's what I did and that's what those sentences did. ”
Read More – Exclusive: Ads condemn Dem Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates for giving pedophiles “lovers' punishment”
https://www.youtube.com/watch? v = qyk5ied2rc4
Breitbart News first reported on Schimel's attack ad against Crawford in the case of CWith 30-year-old pedophile Curtis O'Brien, who faced up to 60 years behind the bar for repeated rapes Abuse According to court documents, the girl was aged five and six between 2012 and 2014.
Court records show Crawford eventually sentenced the 6-foot-1, 270-pound O'Brien to four years in prison with six-year supervision. O'Brien only served nearly two years after the verdict due to time, Wisconsin reports now detail.
“This street is the same as the rest of Wisconsin streets. But the new neighbor is a pedophile, a pedophile who repeatedly raped a little girl who was released in prison for just two years thanks to the sentencing of Judge Susan Crawford's lover. “Now, pedophiles are blocked from school, and with Susan Crawford on the bench, your street could be next.”
According to current Wisconsin reports, Crawford repeatedly allowed O'Brien to move around the state with $500 signing bonds, later approved the move from Black Earth to Oshkosh and then to Madison. O'Brien had a previous criminal history before a child sexual abuse case, court records show.
O'Brien's listed address for Wisconsin sex offender registration is confirm He currently lives near several elementary schools in Madison, Wisconsin. A search on Google Maps revealed that he lives 1.3 miles from Kennedy Elementary School, 0.8 miles from Elbehem Elementary School, and 3.8 miles from Winnequarter Elementary School. State law only limit Sex offenders from living within 1,500 feet of school grounds, childcare facilities, parks, places of worship and youth centers.
“Susan Crawford has spent a career prioritizing dangerous criminal sentiment over safety in our community,” Jacob Fisher, a spokesman for the Simel campaign, previously told Breitbart News. “There's a clear reason law enforcement supports this race by law enforcement: Judge Brad Simel is the only candidate with a track record of prosecuting violent criminals, defending the most vulnerable people and doing justice.”
Crawford's campaign is backed by left-wing mega-donors, including Silicon Valley billionaire and Epstein Island visitors Reed Hoffman, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pretzker (D) and left-wing billionaire George Soros. Crawford is also approved by a variety of far left groups, including the pro-aboration Emily list, planned parent-child relationships, and the sheriff. ignore ice.
When the moderator asked Crawford if she was accepting support from Soros and how much she spent on his campaign, she didn't give a straight answer.
“You know, there was a generous contribution I made to the Democrats in Wisconsin. The Democrats in Wisconsin supported me and supported my candidacy,” she said. She biased towards the topic of the Elon Musk partnership group, which paid her for a TV ad blitz.
In Wisconsin, state Supreme Court Justice serves a 10-year term. Although the corporate class is nonpartisan, both sides of the political aisle have received significant investment in election outcomes. The 2025 Wisconsin Supreme Court competition was expensive More than in the 2023 election, which crushed the national spending record for a $56 million judicial contest and led to massive out-of-state spending.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on x @thekat_hamilton.
