MADISON, Wis. – Today, Attorney General Josh Kaul issued the second formal AG opinion of his term.

The AG opinion, addressed to Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC) Secretary Kevin Carr, concerns monetary restitution owed by criminal offenders to crime victims that remains unpaid upon an offender’s death while under DOC supervision. Under these circumstances, Attorney General Kaul concluded that Wisconsin law permits criminal sentencing courts to enter civil judgments in favor of crime victims in the amount of the restitution that remains unpaid, just as sentencing courts may do when an offender leaves DOC supervision for other reasons.

Attorney General Kaul further concluded that, while DOC does not have a legal duty to ask sentencing courts to enter civil judgments of this sort, DOC may and should do so given that our state constitution and statutes guarantee crime victims the right to restitution.

A copy of the Attorney General’s opinion is available here.

A copy of the opinion request is available here.