[Milwaukee, WI] – On September 14th, 2023 Milwaukee County Supervisor Anthony Staskunas wrote an open letter to Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson. In the letter, Staskunas called for the removal of Supervisor Ryan Clancy from his chairmanship of the County’s Judiciary, Law Enforcement, and General Services (JLEGS) Committee. Supervisor Staskunas believes that the committee would be better served with a chairperson that “will be able to handle this committee in an even handed fashion, giving and granting to law enforcement the respect that they are due.” This letter to Chairwoman Nicholson comes after Supervisor Clancy said that police officers’ jobs “have neither dignity nor value.”
Supervisor Clancy has been a fierce advocate for demands raised by community members and organizers who have been demanding robust change within the Milwaukee County Jail and policy creation to generate greater transparency and accountability from the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO). He has made himself readily available and has shown an earnest attempt at listening to the needs and demands of the people of Milwaukee.
Supervisor Staskunas’s attacks on Supervisor Clancy are attacks on the demands of the people of Milwaukee County who need transparency and accountability from the MCSO. The MCSO has left families of people who have died while in their custody and “care” in the dark. The families of Brieon Green and Cilivea Thyrion were denied answers to their questions for months. Transparency and accountability are not only important to these families as they seek closure, but it’s also important to those who are currently in the MCSO’s custody and “care.”
The resolutions Supervisor Clancy has been introducing and supporting represent the work being done to ensure there aren’t any more in-custody deaths and that conditions drastically improve inside the County Jail. The removal of Supervisor Clancy from his position would be detrimental to change that is desperately needed in Milwaukee County. Stop the attacks on accountability and transparency!
