In Josh Kaul’s Wisconsin violent crime is down, but in Eric Toney’s Fond du Lac violent crime is up

Wisconsin recorded its lowest number of violent crimes since 2011 last year and the statewide violent crime rate has declined for five consecutive years, according to FBI data. 

This is happening despite a narrative by conservative politicians and right wing media pundits that Wisconsin crime is out of control and Democrats are to blame for being “soft on crime.” 

The campaign for Democratic nominee for Wisconsin attorney general Josh Kaul says the progress is consistent with the comprehensive approach to public safety Kaul has championed since assuming office in 2019. 

While statewide violent crime is trending downward, the contrast to the home county for the Republican nominee is stark. The FBI’s definition of violent crimes include homicide, aggravated assault, robbery and rape.

Since 2022, violent crime in Fond du Lac County, where Eric Toney is district attorney, has been higher per capita than the rest of the state, according to the FBI. Since voters last chose between the two candidates in 2022, violent crime fell 21% statewide while increasing 19% in Fond du Lac County.   

In 2025, Fond du Lac had its second-highest number of violent crimes in four decades (the highest was 2023). 

Toney’s campaign didn’t respond to a request for comment, but he addressed the uptick crime in February in a Fox11 story. He said despite filing three times as many cases, crime is up because the county lacks an adequate jail facility, plus about 30% of their inmates are young people that come from the Milwaukee, Chicago or Green Bay areas. 

“Homicides and shootings, a good number of them have been committed by juveniles or very young adults where we’ve prosecuted some very serious cases against very young people. And that was something we didn’t see 10 years ago,” Toney said. 

A Fond du Lac County district supervisor wrote an op-ed last month asking, “What’s going on with crime in Fond du Lac County?” considering crime is down statewide and nationwide. 

“There is broad agreement that violent crime in the county is going up despite trending significantly downward in the nation as a whole. Most of the violent crime in the county is domestic violence,” wrote Kat Griffith. 

Although an uptick in crime is not solely on the head prosecutor, there are instances when Toney failed at his job and that resulted in deadly consequences. 

In one particular case of incompetence, a minor name change resulted in Toney’s office not contesting a low cash bail for a defendant his office believed had no prior record. The defendant, Ruben Houston II, actually had nine prior felony convictions, posted the $500 bail and just days later killed Appleton firefighter Mitchell Lundgaard in a shootout with police.

Toney said at the time his office didn’t receive the correct background information for the defendant. 

Toney also let a defendant walk free after failing to prosecute a prior domestic violence incident, and the man went on to intentionally crash his pickup truck into a former police officer and special agent Phillip Thiessen. The defendant, Daniel Navarro, a Latino man, said he was motivated to kill a white person. 

And also, Toney has failed to secure a conviction in a human trafficking and revenge porn case after a woman allegedly had nude photos of herself posted online without her knowledge by a man, who then brought other men to the woman’s home to engage in prostitution. 

Crime happening or originating in Milwaukee is often a talking point of Toney’s. Despite narratives spun up nearly every time a violent crime happens in Milwaukee, statistics from the police department show a significant decline in violent crime since 2020. That trend downward is continuing this year. 

Kaul’s campaign credits the decline in crime in part to policies and practices of local officials, including the Democratic nominee for governor, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley. 

Kaul, who was floated as a candidate for governor in recent years, is seeking a third term as attorney general. Both prior elections were won by razor-thin margins. 

The former Baltimore prosecutor, and Yale and Stanford graduate is open and active about fighting the Republicans agenda in the state by often bringing lawsuits against them, including President Donald Trump’s administration.  

Kaul’s office is investigating the Madison police shooting of Corey Ruiz. The Dane County District Attorney’s office will make a charging decision.

Toney, who was also the Republican nominee for attorney general four years ago, has been district attorney for Fond du Lac County since 2012.