Winnebago County D.A. Defends Office Against Allegations
May 17 WBAY
The Winnebago County District Attorney is now fighting back against allegations
of wrong doings against his office. Last Friday, reliable sources told Action 2 news
the FBI is investigating the Winnebago County D.A.'s office over allegations it
*may* have accepted bribes in exchange for reducing charges and dismissing
cases. D-A Joe Paulus denies all of this. On Tuesday, he fired two Assistant
D.A's.. E.J. Jelinksi, who is running for District Attorney, and Jelinski's campaign
manager, Tom Chalchoff. Paulus said both men were behind the allegations.
Paulus was extremely upset over the allegations and doesn't plan on taking them
lightly. Thursday night, he told Action 2 News these allegations are nothing more
than rumor and inuendo. Paulus was at the Civic Center in Oshkosh for a
program called Top Cop which honors police officers. He said they should have no
reason to doubt his ability to prosecute and put criminals behind bars.
Joe Paulus said he welcomes any investigation that will prove the allegations
false.
"I spent a career here, building a reputation, and if they're going to say those
kind of things, they're going to get it right back," Paulus said.
Paulus also had harsh words for his former assistant, E.J. Jelinski, who Paulus
said secretly taped conversations about him.
"This guy was just doing nothing more than taping me in his office in private
conversations, it's despicable."
Paulus refused to give any specifics as to why Jelinski was fired Tuesday, only
saying it was in the best interest in the office.
"This guy has given me a black eye like it's nobody's business, but again, you
know, that's the nature of politics. You can say whatever you wanna say.You can
throw it at anybody, but I know in my case, it won't stick because there's no truth
to it," he said.
Paulus said he's not surprised by some of the questions raised in court, or that
some officers decided not to attend this year's event, but overall, most people
still trust him.
"I think 99 percent of the police officers in this county know what I do for him,
and what I do for the community and how I fight against crime," he said.
Paulus is still trying to decide if he'll seek another term in office.
"I'm gonna give some serious thought as to what I wanna do, do I want to
continue on with this, or do I want to try something different, my wife and my
family will make a decision," he said.
Paulus also said the FBI has not contacted him about any investigation. However,
the Attorney General's office has confirmed an investigation into the Winnebago
County D.A.'s office is taking place.