County Supervisor Ryan Clancy Supports 25% Cut to Sheriff’s Budget
MILWAUKEE – Earlier today, a broad coalition of community groups issued a public letter to Milwaukee County Sheriff Earnell Lucas in which they ask for a 25% reduction in that department’s budget, and a re-allocation of funds to much needed social services. Supervisor Ryan Clancy issued the following statement regarding the demands outlined in the letter:
“In my short time with Milwaukee County, I have seen firsthand the phenomenal, vital work that County employees do to improve the lives of residents. From housing, to homelessness outreach, to mental health, to our parks, to providing safe facilities for our children, I have also seen the impact that reduced revenue has had on those services, and know how much better we could do if we moved the money to where it does the most good.
“I stand with the demands of Black Leaders Organizing Communities (BLOC), the Black Socialist Caucus of Milwaukee Democratic Socialists of America, the African American Civic Engagement Roundtable (AART), the Black Educators Caucus (BEC), the Milwaukee Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), and the Milwaukee Area Service and Hospitality Workers Organization (MASH). The time is now.
“I am hopeful that our Sheriff agrees. His public comments have consistently reflected that he does not want his deputies to exceed his state-mandated duties, that they are not trained or equipped to deal with issues such as providing mental health services, and that it’s inappropriate to ask them to do so. I agree.
“I am hopeful that the Sheriff’s budget request reflects this wisdom of our times. I’m hopeful it is proactive in freeing up resources for other county departments that are better suited to handle the various needs of our community and that it is narrowly tailored to allow his deputies to focus on their core responsibilities. Every dollar diverted from the Sheriff’s budget will be one which can provide essential services, by professionals, to our residents.
“Should the 2021 MCSO budget as submitted not reflect this new reality, I join with these organizations in asking the County Executive to make the necessary cuts and to send us a budget which does. I am hopeful that he will.
“Should he not make those cuts, I am hopeful and confident that I, and my peers on the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors, will.”
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
Recent Press Releases by Ryan Clancy
Not so fast Clancy, you want safe parks, freeways, beaches, taking out the bad guys, you can’t cut the budget by 25% and maintain service’s. You politicians need to stop making law enforcement the scapegoat for all of the currents social ills. This is nothing more than political theater.. Ride in a police patrol car for a shift ( I did ) and see what really goes on.
25% seems a reasonable place to start in downsizing the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office. Clancy’s endorsement of the requests of county community groups in this is well-stated, thoughtful, and timely. In a major metropolitan area where each local jurisdiction funds and operates its own local police force, the County Sheriff has long been redundant in many of the enforcement services it provided and a strain on severely limited funding resources. Let the Board and Executive move forward with these measures to reduce the size of the Sheriff’s Office and the scope of its activities and move the funding recovered to where it will do more good, whether in reducing the property tax burden or shifting resources to agencies better able to provide services that Milwaukee County needs.
MCSO is unique among all 72 Wisconsin sheriff offices in that it serves a full incorporated county – that is every bit of Milwaukee County is part of a municipality (city or village) with its own police department. As such, MCSO provides very limited traditional police services.
Former sheriff Clark was good at promoting a self-image as “top cop” of the county, when his actual duties were nothing like that. Municipal chiefs of police do not report to the sheriff.
MSCO main duties are: freeway patrol, court house security, jail security, service of court papers, etc.. As for policing on county property (parks, buses, etc.), the resources dedicated to this have been a mixed bag in my years here. It appears to me that a lot of this work ends up devolving to the municipal police departments.