Missing Bank Robber? 40 Drug Dealers? Juneau County DA Should Be Fighting Crime, Not Penning Letters

Earlier in January, more than 40 people were arrested after an undercover investigation in Juneau County that helped to break up a drug-dealing ring.

And currently there’€™s a $5,000 reward for information about an armed robbery in Juneau County on December 9, 2008.

One would think the top cop in that county, District Attorney Scott Southworth would have several important cases to work on’€”maybe even more drug kings or bank robbers to go after. After all, it’€™s his job to keep the citizens of the county he represents safe from drug dealers and other criminals. Heck, the taxpayers of Juneau County are paying him to investigate crimes and put hardened criminals behind bars.

But today, the people of Juneau County are apparently paying for their District Attorney to weigh in on whether or not he approves of a private decision made between a woman and her doctor’€¦in Madison.

Earlier today, DA Southworth sent a letter to the President and CEO of UW Hospital and Clinics detailing his opposition to a new policy at UW Health that would provide safe, legal, and rare second trimester abortions to women in and around Dane County.  The UW is stepping up to fill a critical public-health responsibility to provide the service to women who need it’€”due to a recent retirement of a women’€™s health provider in Madison, there are currently no providers in Madison who perform second trimester abortions.

Southworth says that he thinks the UW should ‘€œspend its time’€”and our valuable state resources’€”to invest in ways to assist low-income and uninsured individuals in obtaining quality health care services.’€ Well, DA Southworth, this is exactly what they are doing. And I would expect that District Attorneys in this state would spend THEIR time’€”and out state’€™s valuable resources’€”to butt out of a very personal decision that is made between a woman and her doctor. It’€™s bad enough when lawmakers try to insert themselves into the doctor’€™s office, but now women have to worry about an over-zealous COP and lawyer too?DA Southworth needs to get his priorities straight. He was hired by the citizens of Juneau County to fight crime, not pretend he’€™s a doctor or an abortion clinic protestor. That’€™s not to say that DA Southworth should or should not hold whatever personal position on this issue’€”and if he would like to take his own time to pen a letter as a private citizen, I certainly encourage him to do so. But not on my time, not on the state’€™s time, not on state letterhead, not using his taxpayer funded office, staff or equipment. Get busy fighting crime!

Now that DA Southworth has wasted our state’€™s valuable time and resources, maybe he could get started finding that bank robber’€¦

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