PLYMOUTH, Minn. – October 12, 2022 – Minnesota Attorney General candidate Jim Schultz today called on Attorney General Keith Ellison to disavow his far-left position supporting the elimination of cash bail, noting that the failure of prosecutors to seek cash bail for entire categories of crime and to substantially eliminate cash bail in parts of the juvenile criminal justice system have contributed to the soaring violent crime in Minnesota.
In addition, Schultz called upon Ellison to support the Bail Abatement Nonprofit Exclusion (BANE) Act. The BANE Act was introduced earlier this year to crack down on nonprofit organizations like the Minnesota Freedom Fund, the nonprofit bail fund that has a record of making bail payments for criminals who go on to commit new crimes following their release, from registering in the state of Minnesota for the purposes of providing payments to be used for bail.
“Keith Ellison shows more concern for violent criminals than for their victims, and that is an outrage,” said Schultz. “Minnesotans deserve an Attorney General that will end the revolving door of violent criminals not being held accountable for their actions. Key to this is ensuring we have responsible bail policies.”
Ellison, who backed the 2021 Minneapolis charter amendment focused on defunding and dismantling the Minneapolis police and supported ending bail for 19 felony crimes in Hennepin County, doesn’t have a single endorsement from law enforcement this year. Meanwhile, Schultz has been endorsed by 22 county sheriffs from across the state of Minnesota, and will announce additional sheriff endorsements in the near future. Schultz has also been endorsed by the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association.
“I call on Keith Ellison to disavow his support for reckless no-bail policies and join me in supporting the BANE Act, which will crack down on extreme organizations like the Minnesota Freedom Fund that have led to increases in violent crime.”
Schultz joins a growing number of local leaders who have sounded the alarm over Democrats’ soft on crime policies to end bail for dangerous criminals.
