Wall Blasts Walker, Schimel on Youth Prison
Former corrections secretary says governor, AG ignored Lincoln Hills abuses for political reasons.
Former state Department of Corrections Secretary Ed Wall released a new book Friday in which he accuses Gov. Scott Walker and Attorney General Brad Schimel of intentionally neglecting the state investigation into inmate abuse at Wisconsin’s youth prisons.
Wall served as DOC secretary from 2012 until 2016. He resigned as the federal government began an investigation into abuse allegations at the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake youth prisons.
In the book, “Unethical — Life in Scott Walker’s Cabinet and the Dirty Side of Politics,” Wall accuses Walker and Schimel of refusing to get more involved in the investigation for political reasons.
Wall said he asked the governor several times to visit Lincoln Hills, but was brushed off.
“I talked to the chief of staff and I said, ‘Could you tell me just exactly what’s more important than state employees possibly harming kids that are in our care?'” Wall said.
The governor said earlier this week he sees “no value” in visiting state prisons.
“Scott Walker took me in — hook, line and sinker,” Wall said. “I thought he was a genuine guy … But what I found out was really he was nothing more than a political tool. He’s a lifetime politician and the only thing that drives him are poll numbers and donations.”
Wall said he also repeatedly asked Schimel to put more resources into the state investigation at Lincoln Hills, but Schimel was, “completely disconnected.”
Wall said he believes the inaction was politically motivated.
“I began thinking perhaps the two of them were working together to try and shelve the investigation at Lincoln Hills because they knew they had some exposure — Schimel because he had done a crummy job of overseeing the investigation and the governor because he wouldn’t engage.”
Wall said the message he received from the two men was, “Sit down, shut up and keep those people locked up.”
Walker’s office and Schimel have both released statements denying Wall’s allegations.
Schimel fired Wall from the state DOJ in 2016, after Wall wrote a letter to a Walker aide asking for his secretary job back and suggesting the letter could be shredded.
“Mr. Wall’s description of Lincoln Hills related events is not accurate and his efforts to circumvent public records law was egregious,” said Schimel in a prepared statement. “We fired Ed Wall for dishonesty, and his termination was upheld by every agency and court that reviewed it.”
Wall also wrote in the book that the conflict nearly drove him to kill himself.
Wisconsin has been sued by inmates who have been injured at Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake. In March, the state agreed to pay nearly $19 million to a former inmate who attempted to hang herself in her cell. Her lawsuit said guards failed to notice or prevent her actions.
Earlier this year, the state Legislature passed, and Walker signed a new law that sets the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake facilities on track to close by 2021. They will be converted into an adult facility and several smaller youth prisons will be opened across the state.
Listen to the WPR report here.
Former Corrections Secretary: Walker, Schimel Neglected Youth Prison For Political Reasons was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
More about the Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake
- MKE County: County Has Just 22 Inmates in Youth Prisons - Edgar Mendez - Feb 24th, 2021
- Evers Pushes Juvenile Justice System Changes - Corri Hess - Feb 18th, 2021
- Youth Justice Milwaukee Calls for Transformation of the Wisconsin Youth Justice System as the State Acknowledges it Will Not Meet the July 2021 Deadline to Close Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake Prisons - Youth Justice Milwaukee - Feb 8th, 2021
- Pandemic Causes Youth Prison Problems - Graham Kilmer - Jan 27th, 2021
- Can State Rescue Youth Corrections Plan? - Graham Kilmer - Jan 11th, 2021
- State Can’t Meet Deadline to Close Youth Prisons - Graham Kilmer - Dec 30th, 2020
- MKE County: Crowley Defers Youth Corrections Grant Until State Has Sustainable Plan - Graham Kilmer - Sep 16th, 2020
- State Blows Up County Youth Corrections Plan - Graham Kilmer - May 20th, 2020
- Youth Advocates Remain Committed to Closing Wisconsin Youth Prisons Following Monitor’s Report - American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin - Mar 5th, 2020
- Milwaukee County Wants Alternatives to Youth Incarceration - Sam Woods - Feb 22nd, 2020
Read more about Lincoln Hills and Copper Lake here