County counsel updates committee on litigation; bellwethers chosen and consent-decree talks underway

Deputy Corporation Counsel Melinda Lawrence delivered updates on pending litigation and settlement payments affecting Milwaukee County.

Lawrence told the committee bellwether cases in a major insulation litigation were selected and Milwaukee County was not among the bellwethers. She said a September evidentiary hearing was converted to a status hearing and a future hearing is set for Jan. 27, 2027. Lawrence also reported the county and the ACLU are meeting to discuss amending a roughly 30-year-old consent decree to set new, more concrete terms toward sunsetting the decree. On claims and settlement payments, staff summarized recent payments reported in the file and noted many property-damage items typically relate to vehicles.

The committee discussed capacity pressures at the countys criminal justice facilities; Lawrence said both sites have been running near capacity for months and the county is using internal measures (annexes, limited DOC variances and intake moderation) while pursuing system partners and alternatives such as increased electronic monitoring.