The Calumet County district attorney accused of “sexting” a domestic abuse victim will resign before his trial for removal begins, his attorney said Monday.
The announcement came shortly after a preliminary hearing began to schedule proceedings to remove DA Ken Kratz from office.
The first hearing with testimony to begin the removal proceedings was scheduled for Oct. 8, but Kratz will resign before then, according to his attorney.
Kratz originally refused to resign his position, although he did go on indefinite medical leave after the Associated Press broke the story two weeks ago.
The AP reported Kratz, 50, sent 30 text messages with a sexual bent to Stephanie Van Groll, 26, in November while prosecuting her boyfriend for attempting to strangle her.
Since the initial story, three other women have come forward alleging Kratz also abused the authority of his position and acted inappropriately in his dealings with them, according to the complaint filed by a Calumet County tax payer that initiated the removal proceedings.
The governor has the power to remove a DA from office, but only after a county tax payer submits a notarized complaint, which Gov. Jim Doyle received Wednesday.
Van Groll reported the incident to police, but the Office of Lawyer Regulation cleared Kratz of criminal charges and closed the case in March without forwarding the complaint to the Department of Justice.
Kratz was asked to step down from his position as chair of the Wisconsin Crime Victims’ Rights Board
However, the DOJ recommended the issue be reexamined and the OLR announced they would reopen the case Friday.
Democratic candidate for attorney general Scott Hassett has also seized the opportunity to question current Attorney Gen. J. B. Van Hollen’s handling of the situation.
“Today’s announcement is welcome news, but this is certainly not the end of the Kratz scandal,” Hassett said in a statement. “I’ve said from the beginning that Ken Kratz’s predatory behavior is deplorable and he should have been removed nearly a year ago.”
There are still serious questions as to why Kratz was allowed to continue his “predatory behavior” for nearly a year after the complaint was filed, Hassett added.
