Wisconsin lawmakers are discussing a Republican-authored bill requiring the state’s parole commission to comply with open meetings laws and post its decisions online. The bill would also require the Department of Corrections to post online any guidance documents used by the commission in making parole decisions, the names of any individuals granted or denied parole, and those returned to prison for parole violations, along with monthly and annual totals. The Assembly Committee on State Affairs discussed the proposal at a public hearing, but the committee was not expected to vote on it. The forum allowed stakeholders to air their grievances about the commission’s shortcomings.
Republican lawmakers have been critical of the parole commission since May 2022, when it decided to parole convicted murderer Douglas Balsewicz after he had served 25 years of his 80-year sentence. Balsewicz had fatally stabbed his wife, Johanna Balsewicz, in West Allis in 1997. The commission’s chair, John Tate, a Democratic appointee of Governor Tony Evers, approved the decision, prompting outrage from Johanna Balsewicz’s family. Several Republicans running for governor at the time demanded Evers intervene, but he lacked the power to rescind paroles unilaterally. In response to the criticism, Evers met with Johanna Balsewicz’s family and asked Tate to rescind Douglas Balsewicz’s parole, citing the family’s inadequate opportunity to respond. Tate complied with Evers’ request and resigned weeks later.
Evers appointed former Democratic state senator Jon Erpenbach to replace him in January.
The bill’s sponsors, Republican State Representative John Spiros and Senator Van Wanggaard, argue that the commission should be subject to open meetings laws, increasing transparency and accountability. The Wisconsin Newspaper Association and the Wisconsin Professional Police Association have registered in favor of the bill, according to Wisconsin Ethics Commission records, but no groups have registered in opposition. However, whether the bill will gain enough support to pass the Assembly and Senate remains to be seen.
Evers’ spokesperson, Britt Cudaback, responded to the bill by pointing to two sentences in the governor’s budget proposal that called for “clarifying the responsibilities” of the commission to notify crime victims’ families when a convict applies for parole and is released on parole. The budget language does not elaborate, and Cudaback did not respond to a follow-up message seeking more details.
The proposed bill aims to hold the parole commission accountable by increasing transparency and ensuring its decisions are available to the public. It is still unclear whether the bill will pass, but the public hearing allowed stakeholders to express their opinions on the commission’s shortcomings.