The Racine County Sheriff's Office is the principal
law enforcement agency
A law enforcement agency (LEA) is any government agency responsible for law enforcement within a specific jurisdiction through the employment and deployment of law enforcement officers and their resources. The most common type of law enforcement ...
that serves Racine County, providing police services to multiple areas throughout the county, including contracted areas. The current sheriff is Christopher Schmaling, a
Republican who was first elected in 2010.
Leadership
Sheriff
The incumbent sheriff of Racine County is Christopher Schmaling. Schmaling has been part of the sheriff's office since 1996. He was first elected in the
2010 midterm election, receiving 63 percent of the vote. Schmaling took office on January 3, 2011, replacing retiring sheriff Robert Carlson, who had served in the position since 2003.
Schmaling is a
Republican and member of the
Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association, and has campaigned for
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
. During the
COVID-19 pandemic in Wisconsin
The global COVID-19 pandemic struck the U.S. state of Wisconsin in early February 2020. Although Wisconsin has to date experienced 144 deaths per 100,000 residents, significantly fewer than the US national average of 196 deaths, COVID-19 was on ...
, Schmaling refused to enforce the state's stay-at-home order, claiming it was unconstitutional. In 2021, Schmaling accused the
Wisconsin Elections Commission
The Wisconsin Elections Commission is a bipartisan regulatory agency of the state of Wisconsin established to administer and enforce election laws in the state. The Wisconsin Elections Commission was established by a 2015 act of the Wisconsin Legi ...
of breaking the law during the 2020 election, in connection with
claims of voter fraud during the 2020 presidential election: the Racine County prosecutor declined to bring charges. In 2022, Schmaling declined to investigate a man who had requested fraudulent absentee ballots in order to demonstrate weaknesses in the absentee ballot request system.
Chief deputy
The chief deputy of the sheriff's office serves as the sheriff's second-in-command. The current chief deputy is James Weidner. The previous chief deputy is John C. Hanrahan. In 2004, the Wisconsin Association of Homicide Investigators awarded him with the Michael Vendola Death Investigator of the Year Award. He was involved in the investigation of
Racine County Jane Doe
Peggy Lynn Johnson (formerly known as Racine County Jane Doe), also known by the last name Schroeder, was an American woman whose body was discovered in 1999 in the town of Raymond, Racine County, Wisconsin. She was 23 years old at the time of ...
.
Jail
The Racine County Jail, located in downtown Racine and sharing a block with the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, is the primary detention facility of the county and the sheriff's office. The jail has a maximum capacity of 876 inmates, making it one of the largest non-state detention facilities in Wisconsin. As of December 2015, the jail had a population of 667. The current administrator of the Racine County Jail is Captain Bradley Friend.
Racine County Jail website
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References
External links
Official website
{{Racine County, Wisconsin}
Racine County, Wisconsin
Sheriffs' offices of Wisconsin