Wisconsin Department of Corrections Secretary Jared Hoy read the names of 10 prison and community corrections workers described as seriously injured in the line of duty in 2025. 

“We work in close contact with a sometimes challenging population, and the only thing keeping it from being more dangerous is the professionalism and dedication of you and your colleagues,” Hoy said during the 2026 Secretary’s Awards ceremony last week at the Mitby Theater at Madison College, honoring standout staff. 

Among those recognized were the department’s legislative director, an officer who has grown fresh produce used in a facility kitchen and the New Lisbon Correctional Institution treatment team for restricted housing — where an incarcerated person may be sent as punishment for a violation.

The department’s first Corey Proulx award was named for a youth counselor who died in 2024 after a teen attacked him at the Lincoln Hills youth prison. Proulx’s death had a tremendous impact on the department, Hoy said. 

Hoy said that Lincoln Hills staff have created an area at Lincoln Hills/Copper Lake Schools for contemplation and reflection in Proulx’s honor, which “is beautiful and it just centers you.”

“As much as Corey’s death impacted us, his life meant so much more … Corey said, quote, ‘If I could make a difference in just one youth’s life, it will be worth it,’” Hoy said. “This award honors an employee who lives that philosophy every day.” 

A treatment specialist at the minimum-security Chippewa Valley Correctional Treatment Facility received the award. The facility aims to treat substance abuse and related issues, preparing people to re-enter their communities, the DOC’s website says. 

“When our clients feel loved, heard, respected and understood, it shows them that the world is not as harsh of a place as they thought,” Hoy said. “It gives them hope for their future and the ability to advocate for themselves.” 

Hoy also recognized staff who were honored with a lifesaving and valor award. 

“So what does this look like day to day?” Hoy said. “I’m talking about the staff at the La Crosse [probation and parole] office who leapt into action when a six-week-old premature baby stopped breathing. They delivered first aid to the infant, called 911 and kept calm. The baby recovered after a short hospital stay.”

Hoy said that at Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility, staff saw a person trying to climb a fence overlooking a 16-foot drop onto Interstate 43. The team helped the person off the fence and to safety, “stopping what would have likely been a successful suicide attempt,” Hoy said. 

As they were securing the first person, they saw another person climbing the fence across the street, Hoy said, and the team escorted that person back to safety as well. 

Senior probation and parole agent Amanda Herson received a safety award for her work on a situation involving a person who stalked a young woman at a technical college in Green Bay, according to an account of events announced by an awards ceremony emcee. 

That person was a client of Herson’s on correctional supervision in the community. Herson conducted a lengthy investigation into the stalking, which took place over two different semesters. 

Law enforcement was initially not interested in investigating, but Herson’s advocacy led to law enforcement seeing the severity of the stalking behaviors, the emcee said. 

Herson’s client, who was already on supervision for stalking multiple minors and an adult, was eventually charged with a new stalking offense.

“Agent Herson dedicated significant time to ensure the victim was safe and had a voice,” the emcee said. 

Eric Weigel has been a correctional officer with the DOC for over 22 years, according to a nomination read by an event emcee. He won a SALUTE (Service, Awareness, Leadership, Uniqueness, Team and Excellence) award in the category of “uniqueness.”

Weigel is currently the New Lisbon Correctional Institution horticulture officer, or “the garden guy.” As the horticulture officer for the past 10 years, he grew an average of 25,000 pounds of fresh produce per season, which was used in the institution kitchen for staff, meals for the incarcerated and reduced food costs. 

Weigel maintains a partnership between the New Lisbon prison and a national wildlife refuge, which he provides with native wildflower seeds. He’s one of the “very few” people at the prison who can perform all the duties of every single traditional post in the institution and do it “flawlessly,” and incarcerated people and staff listen to him and respect what he has to say, the emcee said.

Department of Corrections leadership made stops across the state last week. May 3-9 is recognized as Correctional Employees Week. 

Hoy said people who work in DOC institutions “know there’s one hot topic out there right now, and that is commutations.”

Last month, Gov. Tony Evers ordered the creation of a commutations advisory board, signaling that he is willing to consider reducing the sentences of incarcerated people in Wisconsin who meet certain criteria. Hoy said he spoke with a records supervisor who told him her office will get two to three requests for records reviews every week from incarcerated people, but they had gotten a hundred in the last week. 

Hoy said the supervisor told him that if their extra work meant one or two men at the facility “might have an opportunity for a second chance and to sort of take back their life, that it would all be worth it.”

Racine County and two juvenile detention center staff members in Caledonia, Wisconsin have been sued for allegedly using excessive force on a teen. In a statement, the county says it has made changes since the incident. 

The teen’s mother, Kianna Reed, brought the lawsuit against the county and Robert and Jordan Knight, described in the suit as former and current security coordinators. The facility, the Jonathan Delagrave Youth Development and Care Center, opened less than a month before the incident. 

The lawsuit alleges that on May 27, 2025, the teen, who suffers from emotional and psychological disabilities, became emotionally dysregulated and the Knights egged him on and physically attacked him with excessive force that violated his Eighth Amendment rights. . 

In December, the state public defender’s office released video footage of part of the incident, which appeared to show four staff members directing the then-15-year-old to move from a spot by a wall in a hallway, possibly to a nearby room, and the teen not moving, the Examiner reported. 

After a staff member took a swing at the teen, the situation devolved into a struggle. The teen was struck repeatedly by staff before and after he was on the ground. 

“I’m devastated. No mother should ever have to watch her child be beaten by the very people entrusted with his safety,” Reed said, according to the December release from the public defender’s office. “Seeing that video and knowing my son is still in that facility is terrifying.”  According to the lawsuit, which was filed April 28, the teen is no longer at the facility as of April 9. 

The lawsuit says his placement in the facility stemmed from being found guilty of a misdemeanor count of retail theft and a misdemeanor count of obstructing an officer. 

On the evening of May 27, 2025, while the teen was in the facility dayroom, he “became dysregulated due to one or more of his disabilities, and he began arguing with another (facility) resident,” the lawsuit alleges. An employee requested assistance from safety and security coordinators.

The Knights responded to the dayroom, and the teen willingly walked with them to the intake area with no physical resistance, the lawsuit alleges. Two other coordinators accompanied them to the intake room.

In December, the county said that the teen made multiple threats of physical violence to other juveniles and staff. During the walk to the intake area, he was “mouthing off” to the Knights, who egged him on, the lawsuit alleges. The teen told Jordan Knight he would beat him up but “made no physical contact or aggressive moves toward Jordan Knight.” 

In the intake area, Robert Knight pointed in the teen’s face and screamed at him to “stop making threats,” the lawsuit states. 

The lawsuit says Knight told the teen to enter a holding room and repeatedly said “go ahead then.” It says that without physical provocation or physical resistance from the teen, he punched the teen in the face.

The lawsuit alleges that the teen did not punch, kick or otherwise try to injure the Knights during the incident. Robert and Jordan Knight hit him over 20 times with closed fists, knee strikes and elbow strikes, it says.

The teen experienced physical injury, pain and suffering, emotional distress and other damages, the lawsuit says.

According to the public defender’s office, the teen had bruises, swelling on his right eye, blurred vision and headaches, scrapes and cuts and dried blood in his ear, based on records from evaluations arranged by the facility. 

The county executive’s office sent a statement to the Examiner, saying that after the incident, Racine County conducted an internal review of policies, procedures and operational practices at the center, with protocol updates receiving final approval from the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. 

“Racine County Human Services is dedicated to continuous improvement. It is imbedded in our operations with the goal for the highest quality of services for those entrusted in our care,” the county asserted in a written statement. 

The county stated that as part of that review, it implemented additional measures focused on supervisor practices, staff training and continued development on de-escalation, trauma-informed care and evidence-based responses for youth with complex behavioral and mental health needs. 

The county said it also reviewed treatment-oriented models used in other facilities serving youth with significant behavioral or mental health challenges “to inform ongoing operational improvements.”

Racine County said in December that “the primarily involved staff member” was immediately placed on administrative leave after the incident and resigned within three days. 

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported in December that this was Robert Knight and that Knight said the teen was displaying signs of aggression at the time of the incident. He said his actions were justified based on the teen’s history at the center.  

The Journal Sentinel reported that he said he intended to force the boy back and not actually strike him but that this is not apparent in the video. 

Knight said he resigned because of a shift toward working with more youth with mental health issues, according to the Journal Sentinel. 

The lawsuit alleges that he resigned to avoid investigation of his conduct and actions. 

A different worker seen repeatedly striking Anthony was ordered to complete eight hours of remedial training, according to the public defender’s office release in December. The Journal Sentinel reported that this was Jordan Knight, who, according to the lawsuit, is still working at the facility.

In December, the county said that law enforcement and independent human services agencies fully investigated and reviewed the incident. It said the details of the investigation and relevant video were provided to the Racine County District Attorney’s Office, and that the office declined to pursue prosecution. 

On Friday, the Examiner asked the district attorney’s office for a statement on why the office declined to pursue prosecution. District Attorney Tricia Hanson said in an email that the lawsuit does not change her decision. She said the burden of proof in a criminal case is significantly higher than in the civil lawsuit. 

In December, the public defender’s office called for a “full-scale” investigation into conditions at the facility and the qualifications of staff members who interact with children. State Public Defender Jennifer Bias said that meaningful reforms to how children are treated in the juvenile justice system are needed. 

In its statement on Friday, the county said it will respond to the allegations through the legal process and will not further discuss the pending lawsuit.