MADISON, Wis. — Republican attorney general candidate Eric Toney criticized Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul Wednesday for what Toney alleges are unconscionable delays at the Department of Justice.
Toney said the department had a series of delays related to instances of child exploitation online that had not been handled by the DOJ. The agency has a task force that helps investigate those crimes.
Toney did not offer specifics on the extent of the backlog, however, with the campaign saying it is waiting on the results of an open record request filed last week. The attorney general candidate said he found out through his contacts in the law enforcement community — Toney currently serves as the district attorney in Fond du Lac County.
During a news conference Wednesday, Toney said the problem is holistic in the DOJ.
“In 2018, Josh Kaul’s number one campaign promise was to fix our crime labs and PolitiFact shows he has failed, he’s taking longer to test most categories of items including DNA despite testing thousands of less items,” Toney said.
Kaul’s campaign pointed to comments the attorney general made over the weekend during an appearance on WISN’s UpFront, in which Kaul said Toney was “passing the buck.”
“We have reduced significantly the number of DNA cases that are awaiting testing that means fewer investigators and prosecutors are waiting on the evidence,” Kaul said. “We’re on the right track with those cases. We have more work to do, but we’ve made real progress. We’ve also increased the complexity of the testing.”
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