Posted on 12/10/2015 9:06:21 PM PST by afraidfortherepublic
MADISON, Wis. - Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, the Democrat who launched Wisconsin’s politically driven John Doe investigation into conservatives, appears to have broken state campaign finance law, according to state Attorney General Brad Schimel.
"...(I)t does appear on its face that two maximum contributions were received (by Chisholm's campaign) from the same individual in the same election cycle," Schimel told Wisconsin Watchdog Thursday.
Chisholm did not return a call seeking comment. He has not returned any calls from Watchdog.
As Wisconsin Watchdog exclusively reported this week, Chisholm's campaign accepted donations in excess of single-contributor limits during the same election cycle, according to campaign finance documents.
Documents obtained by Wisconsin Watchdog show James Greenwald, of Wauwatosa, made two contributions of $3,000 each to Chisholm's campaign - on May 5, 2014, and again on Jan. 20, 2015. Maximum single-donor contributions cannot exceed $3,000 for district attorney candidates in counties with populations of more than 300,000 residents, according to state campaign finance law.
Greenwald has not returned calls seeking comment.
"It would be difficult for John Chisholm or his campaign committee treasurer to claim that the second $3,000.00 contribution somehow 'slipped through the cracks' as James Greenwald was John Chisholm's only contributor during the most recent campaign reporting period,†states an amended petition filed by a diverse group of Milwaukee citizens. The citizens have asked Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican and target of Chisholm's secret investigations, to remove the district attorney from office. The group alleges Chisholm is guilty of malfeasance, neglect of duty and official misconduct.
The petitioners also have asked the attorney general, a Republican, to look into Chisholm's conduct, although Schimel on Thursday said he had yet to receive the complaint letter from the Milwaukee County citizens.
Schimel said the campaign finance question is the domain of the state Government Accountability Board, the state's political speech police.
"We consulted with the GAB and, it didn't surprise me, this isn't the first time they have seen this thing happen," Schimel said.
It is the GAB's practice, the attorney general said, to notify campaigns that receive excessive contributions and inform them to refund the donations. The GAB does not "pursue charges of this type of violation," he said.
But they do.
Chisholm and the GAB teamed up in 2010 to go after railroad executive William Gardner, a Walker donor, on charges he exceeded contribution limits. Gardner admitted to using money from his Wisconsin & Southern Railroad Co. to reimburse employees who made contributions to Walker's campaign and others. In doing so, Garder was able to exceed the $10,000-per-individual maximum on Wisconsin gubernatorial campaigns.
Gardner was charged with two felonies for making illegal contributions to politicians, Republicans and Democrats. He was sentenced to two years probation and 100 hours of community service. He also paid a $166,900 fine to the GAB.
While the amount involved in the Gardner case was significantly more than the $6,000 in donations made to Chisholm’s campaign, the district attorney, it could be argued, should know better.
It appears Chisholm, unlike the innocent conservatives he targeted on a widely rejected theory of illegal campaign coordination, will not have to face a multi-year John Doe investigation and have his home raided and his possessions seized.
"I get the irony, but we've got to follow the normal process with the GAB and it has been their policy not to charge on something like this," Schimel said.
But there would appear to be a conflict in letting the GAB take the lead. The agency partnered with Chisholm in the politically driven John Doe investigation that has been declared unconstitutional by the state Supreme Court.
A Republican-led bill dismantling the accountability board passed along party lines in the Legislature last month. Walker, who has said he is in favor of reforming the GAB, has yet to sign the legislation.
Schimel said the petitioners' other complaint that Chisholm failed to disclose who provided his campaign with a $38,000-plus loan is unfounded.
He said the DOJ was able to find earlier records that show the identity of the loan. Records obtained by Wisconsin Watchdog did not include the name of the loan grantor. The GAB began posting campaign finance disclosure forms online about a decade ago, after the loan was originally issued to Chisholm's campaign. Schimel said Chisholm's campaign properly disclosed the loan.
The "John Doe II investigation," launched by Chisholm in August 2012, centered on the prosecutors' widely rejected theory that 29 conservative groups illegally coordinated with Walker's campaign during the state's bitter recall election season.
John Doe procedures are similar to grand jury investigations, without the benefit of a jury of peers. A single judge presides over the often-secret proceedings.
Candidates for elected office may be excused for basic errors in completing Wisconsin campaign finance disclosure forms. But when it's the top law enforcement officer in Milwaukee County, the one who has “repeatedly sought to hold others responsible for campaign finance violations, the acceptance of an illegal campaign contribution … must certainly dictate that John Chisholm has committed Malfeasance in Office," the petitioners state.
Eric O'Keefe, a target of the illegal John Doe investigation who has fought back against the prosecutors, raised this question: "Is John Chisholm above the law?"
Part 302 of 300 in the series Wisconsin's Secret War
VIOLATION: Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm Chisholm's campaign received campaign donations that exceeded the single-donor limit, according to state Attorney General Brad Schimel.
RELATED: Did DA who launched political John Doe break campaign finance laws?
More detail on John Chisholm’s apparent campaign finance violations.
FReep Mail me if you want on, or off, this Wisconsin interest ping list.
dems always get a slap on the wrist when they break the law
Time to raid his house at 3am with a SWAT Team and frog march him AND his wife to the local jail.
Death penalty for the corrupt effer.
Pre-dawn raid on his house, bounce his wife and kiddies outside in their PJs, strip search and perp-walk him. Oh wait, that’s just for John Doe targets, not for campaign law crooks.
LOLOLOL!
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