Wisconsin’s governor creates new violence-prevention office in wake of school shooting

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin’s Democratic governor on Tuesday created a new office dedicated to preventing gun violence, a month after a school shooting not far from the state Capitol and an idea that drew immediate opposition from Republicans who said it was misguided.

Gov. Tony Evers also called on the Republican-controlled Legislature to pass a series of gun control and public safety measures, saying reducing violence should be a “shared priority that transcends politics.”

The Legislature has already rejected numerous gun control measures put forward by Evers, including universal background checks for gun purchases. But Evers said the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School last month demonstrated the need for lawmakers to act.

“Reducing crime and violence should be an issue that receives earnest bipartisan support,” Evers said at a news conference surrounded by gun control advocates, Democratic lawmakers and the mayor and police chief of Madison who responded to last month’s school shooting.

Republicans were not on board.

Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos blasted the proposal as “not well thought out” and said it amounts to “a whole bunch of touchy feely bureaucrats that are going to go around wasting time, wasting money and certainly not putting the effort where it’s deserved.”

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“You know what the most effective violence prevention office is? The police,” Vos said at a news conference.

Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu was noncommittal, but he emphasized that GOP lawmakers have supported spending on other initiatives to address violence, including creating a state Office of School Safety.

Evers signed an executive order creating a statewide office of violence prevention, a move that does not require legislative approval. He said the office will work with local partners, including law enforcement agencies, nonprofits, school districts and gun shop owners with the goal of reducing gun violence.

Creating the office was discussed prior to the school shooting, but the shooting “cemented” his plans, Evers said.

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes, who is leaving next month to become Seattle’s chief of police, called the new anti-violence office a “transformative approach to understanding and addressing the root causes of violence in our society.”

“No city, no matter the size, reputation, or claim to fame, is immune from gun violence,” Barnes said. “We must recognize that to truly safeguard our neighborhoods, we need a comprehensive understanding of violence that goes beyond traditional policing.”

The office will work to develop public education campaigns and promote safer communities, Evers said. It will also award grants to reduce violence, in particular gun violence, to school districts, firearm dealers, law enforcement agencies, nonprofits and government agencies.

Evers announced $10 million in federal funding to create the office. He said his state budget being submitted to the Legislature next month will request more state money to sustain the office over the next two years.

Vos said Assembly Republicans would oppose the request.

Evers also said he would be proposing a sweeping package of gun violence and public safety measures.

Republican majorities in the Legislature shrunk after the November election, leading Evers and Democrats to say they hoped for more bipartisanship and consideration of ideas that have been summarily rejected in the past. But following the Dec. 16 shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison that left a student, teacher and the 15-year-old shooter dead, Republicans have not voiced support for any gun control measures backed by Democrats.

Wisconsin polls have repeatedly shown high public support for a variety of gun control measures.

Evers in 2019 called a special session of the Legislature to pass a universal gun background check bill and a “red flag” proposal that would allow judges to take guns away from people determined to be a risk to themselves or others. Republicans immediately adjourned without debating the measures. It was the first of a dozen special sessions Evers has called since 2019, none of which have been successful.

Democrats have reintroduced those and more than two dozen other gun safety bills over the past six years, but Republicans have repeatedly refused to take them up. Republicans, instead, have introduced bills that would expand access to guns and discussed arming teachers. Evers in 2022 vetoed Republican bills that would have allowed holders of concealed carry permits to have firearms in vehicles on school grounds and in churches located on the grounds of a private school.