New Violence Prevention Office Created After Wisconsin School Shooting

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 —  an idea that drew immediate opposition from Republicans who said it was misguided, the Associated Press reports. 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. 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.”

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.” 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.