Milwaukee – There is a primary election on August 9 and voters are being asked to vote for either Milwaukee County D.A. incumbent John Chisholm who is being challenged by Verona Swanigan.
There is no Republican running in November so this is the election for the Milwaukee County District Attorney that will represent Milwaukee County for the next four years.
Chisholm is running on his experience. Swanigan, a practicing private attorney, is running because she feels Chisholm is to soft on crime.
Common Council President, Alderman Ashanti Hamilton endorsed Chisholm, lauding the DA for establishing the community prosecution program recognized around the nation recognition as a model for breaking the cycle of violence and incarceration.
Attorney Swanigan identifies as a conservative democrat, says that if she is elected as District Attorney she will use her knowledge and experience to challenge people to live out their full potential, address the roots of crime in order to reduce the violence that has taken over Milwaukee.
She has proposed that in order to achieve this she’ll press upon the community to be adherent to the law. She then Intends to enforce more laws to increase order to reduce crime and address police brutality more aggressively.
Chisholm was elected Milwaukee County’s top prosecutor in 2006. He launched two secret John Doe probes of Gov. Scott Walker’s associates.
In a statement Chisholm made when he announced that he was running for office once again, Chisholm said, “My pledge has been to do everything in my power to keep Milwaukee safe, and to reform the way our criminal justice system responds to the deep challenges in our community,” said Chisholm. “I have kept that promise by getting violent offenders off the streets, while also building a nationally recognized Community Prosecution program that works with citizens in neighborhoods to solve problems.”
To address the issue of police brutality Swanigan stated in an interview with a local newspaper, “I tend to properly come up with training programs for police officers, and if they go through [my] constitutional-based training program and don’t comply, then I will have no problem holding them responsible.”
