Governor Evers calls on Dodge County Sheriff to continue investigating Waupun Correctional Institution while federal investigation is underway

FILE – Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers speaks Monday, April 8, 2024, at the Truax campus of Madison Area Technical College in Madison, Wis. Evers appointed a bankruptcy lawyer Friday, May 31, 2024, to replace a conservative-leaning regent of Wisconsin universities who is refusing to resign. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf, File)

(WFRV) – Governor Tony Evers has announced that the Evers administration has asked the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office not to close its investigation into Waupun Correctional Institution (WCI), but to keep it open while the Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC) internal investigation and federal investigations continue.

The Governor also directs DOC to continue its ongoing internal investigations into deaths of individuals in the Department’s custody until the investigation is fully completed.

Upon completion of the investigation, the Governor also directs the DOC to forward the results of its internal investigation to the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office for further investigation and possible additional charges.

Finally, the Governor announced that he was directing the Department to fully release the results of its internal investigation, to the extent permitted by state and federal law and at a time that would not impede or jeopardize ongoing police investigations.

Regarding the charges filed today in Dodge County, Governor Evers issued the following statement:

I am grateful to the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office for its work in this investigation. Last June, the Department of Corrections and I requested federal authorities’ assistance in investigating criminal activity in Waupun, and that investigation is ongoing. I expected from the beginning that the DOC and its staff would fully cooperate with law enforcement and internal investigation efforts, and that continues to be my expectation.

Any person who does not do their job to the high standards we expect, or who does not treat those in our care with the dignity, humanity and respect they deserve, should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law – it’s that simple. There must be accountability and justice. And I believe accountability and justice require that both internal and police investigations continue until they are exhaustive and thorough.

Today, I am directing the DOC to continue its ongoing internal investigations to completion, notwithstanding the Dodge County Sheriff’s statement that its investigation is complete as a result of the charges filed today in Dodge County. I am also directing the Department to provide the results of its investigation to the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office for further investigation and possible charging, as appropriate.

I also direct the Department to publish the results of its internal investigation in a report. This report shall be made publicly and fully available to the extent permitted by state and federal law and shall not impede or jeopardize any ongoing law enforcement investigation.

We have a duty to keep the people in our care, our officers and staff, and our communities safe. And the criminal justice system must hold every wrongdoer accountable.

Tony Evers, Governor of Wisconsin

In June 2023, Governor Evers and the DOC requested that federal law enforcement conduct an in-depth investigation into possible criminal activity at WCI involving a conspiracy to smuggle contraband, including cell phones, illegal drugs, and other prohibited items, into the facility. The federal law enforcement investigation is ongoing.

The allegations followed a series of searches of WCI apartments by the DOC, during which it discovered that there were individuals at the facility who were stealing contraband.

An initial internal investigation by the DOC revealed allegations of possible employee involvement in these illegal activities, including indications of possible financial crimes.

Days after the conclusion of that initial investigation, which uncovered possible employee involvement, and given that the allegations involved multiple jurisdictions, the Evers administration called on federal law enforcement to investigate these allegations and promptly hold accountable all individuals involved in evading state and federal laws.