Yacoub, Nieskes vying for St. Croix County DA’s seat

By Cara L. Dempski

HUDSON — St. Croix County’s current District Attorney, Eric Johnson, is stepping down after 27 years in the office.

Democratic candidate Sarah Yacoub, a Hudson defense attorney who worked for six years in California as a prosecutor, will take on Republican candidate and deputy district attorney Michael Nieskes in the November 8 election.

Sarah Yacoub

Yacoub said she was inspired to run for district attorney after seeing the problems with the current system.

“I came out here and started out doing a lot of public defender work,” Yacoub stated. “But because our system is so broken, we overcharge so much, I found it very easy to get in there and fight the injustices.”

She further stated the system is so bad she cannot continue to work in it in good faith as defense attorney and wants to bring positive change to the office.

Yacoub would like to expand the county’s drug court. She explained the current drug court only accepts “high risk” users, which she qualifies as people whose abuse of drugs is significant enough to warrant time in prison. Yacoub stated the problem she sees is there is no such thing as a “low risk” addict.

She feels the system of diverting those who deal with addiction away from the structure and accountability drug court provides are being set up for failure because a lack of structure often leads to a lack of sobriety.

The Democratic candidate said nearly one dozen victims of domestic violence have reached out to her to discuss their stories and tell her how the system is failing them. When taken to court, such cases should have a surcharge associated with them.

In Wisconsin, a judge can assign $100 per assault/domestic violence charge and figure out a just amount to assign to each person convicted of domestic violence to go to the state for a grant program that funds programs such as the TurningPoint shelter in River Falls, Wisconsin.

Currently, such cases are settled for approximately $243. The cases are being settled for what many people would pay for a traffic fine.

“It’s disgusting,” Yacoub said. “There’s no counseling, no anger management, no ongoing protective orders. There is nothing to help the family move forward.”

Yacoub said the number of DA’s in the county is much higher than it needs to be, and plans to prosecute some cases herself should she be elected. She believes she could streamline the process and work efficiently with fewer attorneys.

As a prosecutor in California, Yacoub collaborated with defense counsel to move cases forward. She wanted to make consequences strong enough that the people she prosecuted would not want to return to the system. While attorneys in Los Angeles were willing to work with her, she has found the attorneys in the St. Croix County district attorney’s office are not willing to work with her.

Overall, Yacoub describes herself as a “fiscally conservative democrat running against an establishment republican.” She stated that many people have verbalized their support directly to her, they are afraid to do so publicly, fearing backlash from Nieskes and his supporters.

“I’m going to run a tighter fiscal ship,” Yacoub said. “I’m a hard-nosed prosecutor, I know my way through the courtroom. I can try cases, and I’m good at it.”

Michael Nieskes

Deputy district attorney Michael Nieskes has worked as a prosecutor since first stepping into the world of law in 1983. It is his 33 years of experience that Nieskes said makes him an excellent candidate for the top prosecutor in the county.

“Doing this is a way of giving back to your community,” Nieskes said. “You’re doing this for your friends, you’re doing this for your family, you’re doing this for your community.”

Nieskes said the role would give him an opportunity to make a greater impact on the people living in St. Croix County. He said he brings a wealth of background and experience to the position from working previously as a DA in Racine County.

Nieskes said that each case he encounters has a different dynamic, and he has the ability to look at cases and make a determination as to what the best outcome would be for everyone involved. He said not only does he think of what would be best for public safety, but he considers whether things like rehabilitation or incarceration would be best for those being prosecuted against.

“One of the unfortunate events that has occurred in the last 40 years is our criminal justice system has become the mental health treatment, the rehabilitative treatment, the educational treatment, the vocational treatment of last resort for many individuals,” Nieskes stated.

He then went on to say the criminal justice system needs to be looking at other ways to solve these issues with the people being served. Sometimes, he said, this includes sending people to diversion programs. One such program involved “moral recognition therapy,” a treatment program that helps participants recognize the impact their actions may have on others.

“Still, there’s no silver bullet in any of this,” Nieskes stated. “But I believe my experience and background helps me make good decisions.”

Should he win the election, Nieskes plans first to hire a replacement for the position he will vacate. He does plan to remain with the cases he is already working on until they reach resolution.

In terms of changing the office, Nieskes does not plan to make many changes at first.

“The office is well-run. There’s a reason Rick (Eric Johnson) has been district attorney for 27 years,” Nieskes stated. “He manages a good office.”

What Nieskes plans to do over the next four years is work with the existing – and any incoming – staff members and work with them to broaden each attorney’s experience prosecuting a variety of different cases.

Otherwise, he believes the current diversion programs are functioning as well as they can. While he anticipates continued monitoring of the diversion programs to make sure all the participants taking part are receiving appropriate assistance, Nieskes said he does not plan any immediate changes.

He also said he plans to maintain a caseload so he is able to see what goes on in the courtrooms in St. Croix County and alleviate some of the work from the other attorneys.

“I think it is important for them to see me in the courtroom doing the work,” Nieskes said.

He stated this stems from a desire to keep him in touch with the staff prosecutors and helps him keep grounded and focused on what the office needs to do on a daily basis.

Nieskes sees the district attorney as someone who needs to always seek the truth and to seek justice.

“Justice is for the victim, the community, and to protect the community,” he said. “That’s our role.”