Browsing: Crime and Justice

Conservative organizations, business groups support commonsense reforms

Badger Institute Policy Analyst Julie Grace testified in favor of 2021 AB 108, AB 109 and AB 110 before the Wisconsin Assembly Committee on Government Accountability and Oversight on May 18, 2021..

These bills would increase transparency in the Wisconsin criminal justice system.

State Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Dallet wrote recently, according to a story in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, that a study on race and prison sentencing in Wisconsin “confirms what I and many others have been saying, which is that we have a long way yet to go to have a system that truly treats all equally.

Badger Institute Policy Analyst Julie Grace testified in favor of 2021 SB 78 before the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety on May 6, 2021.

2021 SB 78 would reform Wisconsin’s expungement laws.

Wisconsin voters often split evenly on big elections and key issues. But voters on the right and the left agree on the dire shortcomings of the state’s corrections system and the need for reform.

The new age of electronic monitoring

Pastor Jerome Smith got a second chance and made sure countless others received one too

Eighty-seven percent of people who would qualify for an expungement under proposed legislation have never committed anything more serious than a misdemeanor, according to new data from the Badger Institute.

Badger Institute Policy Analyst Julie Grace submitted written testimony in favor of 2021 AB 69 before the Wisconsin Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety on April 7, 2021.

2021 AB 69 would reform Wisconsin’s expungement laws.

A majority of Wisconsin voters believe the state’s criminal justice system needs significant improvements, expungement law needs reform; voters overwhelmingly agree the criminal justice system should ensure people are less likely to commit another crime & help people become productive, law-abiding citizens.

The Badger Institute recently hosted a virtual discussion with two Wisconsinites who have seen firsthand the need for expungement reform: State Public Defender Kelli Thompson and Shanyeill McCloud, founder of Clean Slate Milwaukee.

Incarceration is rare for pot-only convictions; coupled with municipal policies, Wisconsin has effectively decriminalized marijuana

For those with a single, low-level, non-violent offense on their record, receiving an expungement would give them the chance to fully move past their mistake, opening employment and housing opportunities.

Badger Institute Policy Analyst Julie Grace testified in favor of 2021 SB 120, SB 122, and SB 123 before the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety on March 18, 2021.

2021 SB 120, SB 122, and SB 123 would increase transparency among law enforcement use-of-force policies and incidents.

Incarceration is rare for pot-only convictions; coupled with municipal policies, Wisconsin has, in effect, decriminalized marijuana.

Coalition releases recommendations to guide Wisconsin policymakers

The Wisconsin Criminal Justice Coalition, led by the Badger Institute, offers policy ideas for combating recidivism, fostering opportunity, saving taxpayer money and maintaining public safety in its second edition of Criminal Justice Reform Recommendations.

Badger Institute urges legislators to advance this meaningful reform

New policy brief focuses on seven key reforms

If Wisconsin policymakers want to reform the state’s criminal justice system in a way that achieves better outcomes for taxpayers, communities and offenders, they will need detailed, accurate and robust data.