The irresponsible policies of liberal district attorneys are going to lead to a backlash that supporters of criminal justice reform will be forced to wrestle with. Waukesha, Wisconsin, has become the latest example.
Darrell Brooks Jr., the man who drove his SUV through a parade and killed five people while injuring dozens more, was a repeat offender who should not have been out on the streets. He has a rap sheet that goes back to 1999 and a history of violent crimes. Yet, thanks to the policies of Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, Brooks was roaming free.
Brooks was released from jail in February after posting a $500 bail on charges of reckless endangerment and felony possession of a firearm. He posted bail again earlier this month after five charges were filed against him after he allegedly punched a woman in the face and then ran over her with his car. His bail for that incident was $1,000.
The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office has launched an internal review of this “inappropriately low” bail recommendation, but it isn’t clear what exactly is being reviewed here. Chisholm takes credit for the policies of liberal district attorneys such as San Francisco’s Chesa Boudin. He has advocated for cash bail reforms for years. His priority has been on reducing incarceration, not ensuring public safety by keeping unrepentant repeat offenders behind bars.
This is a feature of progressive “criminal justice,” not a bug. Though Waukesha is now the most prominent example, we are seeing it all over the country. From Boudin in San Francisco to Kim Foxx in Chicago to others in Philadelphia and Los Angeles, we have seen that the ideal liberal criminal justice system is one that serves as a turnstile for getting criminals back into public life, regardless of the circumstances of their crimes or their criminal histories.
Proponents of sensible criminal justice reform should be prepared for the coming backlash. Progressives have turned ideas of going easier on drug possession or the mentally ill into letting all criminals out into the street, as Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib advocates. Brooks isn’t going to be the last high-profile repeat offender, and each one who follows will only make the cries of “law and order” stronger.
