In Wisconsin, misdemeanor and felony charges referred by law enforcement are reviewed by the District Attorney's (DA) Office before filing. After reviewing and accepting a case, prosecutors decide the number and type of charges to file. This is known as case filing.
This section presents data on all misdemeanor and felony cases for which the DA’s Office has reviewed charges against a defendant and decided to file a case.
Why is this important? To support community safety, we want to maximize limited resources by focusing on serious crime while minimizing unnecessary punitiveness. Understanding the number and types of cases filed in the Office helps to ensure we use resources efficiently, effectively, and fairly.
When law enforcement refers a case, we review it to decide what, if any, charges should be filed. This shows how many cases are filed after review.
This shows the severity of cases filed - felonies and misdemeanors - and how those patterns have changed over time.
This shows the most frequent types of charges filed - for both misdemeanor and felony cases.
These charts provide general information about the people charged in cases, including gender and race.
These charts provide general information about the people charged in cases, including age and prior criminal history.
These charts provide general information about the residents of Rock County and the people charged in criminal cases, including gender and race. The gray bar represents the percent of residents matching that characteristic and the blue bar represents the percent of defendants matching that characteristic.