Kent Lovern being sworn in as Milwaukee County’s 32nd District Attorney (Isiah Holmes/Wisconsin Examiner)
At Milwaukee’s War Memorial Center along Lake Michigan, dozens gathered in a spacious room Thursday evening to welcome Kent Lovern, who succeeded John Chisholm as Milwaukee County’s 32nd district attorney. Throughout the evening, speakers praised Lovern as compassionate to people, wherever they find themselves in the criminal justice system.
Jeff Altenburg, chief deputy at the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, called the evening the biggest day for the DA’s office in 18 years. Lovern has been at the office since 2005, rising in the ranks from assistant district attorney to chief deputy and now to district attorney, after serving under both of the county’s former top prosecutors. Michael McCaine, who was district attorney from 1969 to 2007, and John Chisholm, who was elected in 2007 and now passes the reins to Lovern, were both in the crowd.
“When you stepped into this office, you inherited a profound responsibility to uphold the rule of law, while ensuring that justice is fair, equitable and accessible to everyone,” said Milwaukee County Sheriff Denita Ball. “As you know, this is a task that no single person should shoulder alone.” Ball said that working together with law enforcement, public defenders, advocates, community leaders and other citizens is important. “Together, we are not just enforcers of the law, we are builders of trust and guardians of our community’s wellbeing,” said Ball. “By working together, we can achieve more than any one of us can accomplish alone.”
Carmen Pitre, president and CEO of the Sojourner Family Peace Center, called Lovern a fierce advocate for providing high-quality victim services to people across the county. The Peace Center offers services and interventions for domestic violence victims, serving nearly 10,000 people a year according to the group’s website. Lovern’s family have remained involved in the peace center, where Lovern himself has also held leadership roles. “Even on our best day, Kent believed that we could do better,” said Pitre, recalling that Lovern would sometimes say, “we have big city problems, but we’re small enough to get our arms around it through relationships.”
Darryl Morin, president and board chairman of Forward Latino. said his group often engages with residents who have been victimized by acts of hate, whether verbally or physically. “These victims are often just terrified and extremely reluctant to report the acts that have been done upon them, for fear that those who perpetrated this crime would come back and in their own words, ‘to finish what they started.’” Morin said that in other cases, there is a lack of confidence that if they did report these incidents, nothing would be done. “I’m so proud to say that that is not the case here in Milwaukee County,” said Morin, saying that Lovern meets with these families with “empathy” and “compassion.”
Joel Brennan, president of the Greater Milwaukee Committee, said too many people confuse vengeance and retribution with justice. Brennan said Lovern “understands that the road to justice is complex, it is winding” and that “the lasting justice that we seek includes penalty and sanction, but also incorporates education, economic opportunity, access to mental health, rehabilitation and renewal, and standing up for the most vulnerable in our community.”
Adam Procell, re-entry specialist co-founder of the Milwaukee-based consulting service Paradigm Shyft, has lived those words. When he was 15 years old, Procell said that he faced a 25-year prison sentence. “I didn’t believe in myself,” said Procell. He recalled when he was paroled in 2008 he ran into Chisholm who, like Procell, was wearing a blue suit that day. They had a conversation, and through Chisholm Procell was introduced to Lovern, with whom he built a friendship. “Nobody is beyond redemption,” said Procell, “you don’t have to be defined by your mistakes.”
Chief Judge in Milwaukee County Carl Ashley, conducted Lovern’s swearing-in. When he took the stage, Lovern said, pointing to Lake Michigan outside, “We live in a community of abundance.” Lovern said that Milwaukee County faces a complex web of challenges, which can only be tackled if “we become a safer, healthier, and more prosperous community.” He added that “everyone in every neighborhood in our county deserves to feel safe in their daily lives. We all need to feel a sense of security so our children can enjoy our parks and playgrounds, our children can focus better in school, and our parents can build a future for their families.”
The community must have a strong sense of accountability to one another, including within the criminal justice system, he added. “It must be clearly understood that a threat to safety within our community will be met with the measured response,” said Lovern. “In doing so, our justice system must itself demonstrate accountability to this community by acting fairly and consistently, with measured firmness in our response. Our system must always seek to uphold the rule of law, in order to protect our commonly shared values.”
While Lovern referenced the importance of “safety and security” throughout his remarks, he also stressed the need for economic, educational, and rehabilitative opportunities for Milwaukee’s most underserved. Milwaukee County is among the most segregated communities in the nation, where life expectancy can vary depending on what zip code you’re born into. “Many who encounter our justice system have experienced trauma in their lives, and for trauma that trauma has existed for generations within families and neighborhoods,” said Lovern. The work of peer supporters, therapists, and advocates, “literally saves lives as they help members of our community face and treat their traumatic conditions.”
Lovern called for more resources and support for Milwaukee’s non-profit sector, which is often on the frontlines, providing mental health and substance abuse treatment. The new district attorney also called for investment in Milwaukee, to push back the county’s “unacceptable” levels of poverty. “Violent crime does not thrive in neighborhoods with high rates of housing stability, and family-sustaining jobs.” Lovern stressed that Milwaukee is an “innovative community”, and that everyone has a role to play. “My commitment to all of you is to work tirelessly to make our community safer,” said Lovern. “I will respond to the actions strongly that threaten our collective safety. I will respond with appropriate compassion to those who need help. I will work with anyone – anyone – who genuinely wants to strengthen our county so that we can create the community that we aspire to be.”
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