A week after the release of documents from prosecutors alleging that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker was part of a "wide-ranging scheme" that illegally coordinated fundraising, one of the prosecutors cautioned Thursday that Walker hasn't been accused of a crime and isn't the target of the investigation.
"While these documents outlined the prosecutor's legal theory, they did not establish the existence of a crime; rather, they were arguments in support of further investigation to determine if criminal charges against any person or entity are warranted," said an attorney representing special prosecutor Francis Schmitz.
The attorney, Randall Crocker, added: "Mr. Schmitz has made no conclusions as to whether there is sufficient evidence to charge anyone with a crime. It is wrong for any person to point to this sentence in a legal argument as a finding by the special prosecutor that Gov. Walker has engaged in a criminal scheme. It is not such a finding."
More from Crocker: "The investigation has been hatted by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. At the time the investigation was hatted, Gov. Walker was not a target of the investigation. At no time has he been served with a subpoena."
But as the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel writes, Crocker's statement "doesn't address whether Walker's campaign was a target of the investigation and a subpoena. The Wall Street Journal and later the Journal Sentinel have reported that Walker's campaign received one of a number of subpoenas in the case and is part of the legal fight challenging them."