Democratic lawmakers unveiled plans Thursday to largely eliminate the use of cash bail in Wisconsin, clashing with Republicans who proposed a constitutional amendment to make it harder for people to get out of jail before trial.

The Democratic proposal, which almost certainly will not pass the Republican-controlled Legislature, would rely on risk assessments to allow most defendants to be released from jail before trial.

Democrats presented the plan as an alternative to a proposed constitutional amendment Republicans placed on the April 4 ballot that would allow judges to consider the criminal histories of people accused of violent crimes when setting bail. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers cannot veto the amendment if it is ratified by a majority of voters next month. The measure’s sponsor, Republican Sen. Van Wanggaard, said it will allow judges to set higher bail amounts for people they deem a risk to public safety.

But criminal justice advocates warn it could worsen crime rates and increase disparities between rich and poor. Research on bail shows that people who are detained before trial are more likely to plead guilty, often accepting plea deals to end their detainment, and more likely to be unemployed in the years after their release. It’s not uncommon for people to lose their jobs and even their homes while in jail awaiting trial.

‘Incarceration for just a day or two can destroy a person’s life for a crime they may not have even committed,’ Jon McCray Jones, a policy analyst at the ACLU of Wisconsin, said at a news conference Thursday announcing the Democratic bail measures.

Meanwhile, the Republican bail plan came one step closer to completion on Thursday when the Senate judiciary committee voted 5-3 along party lines to approve a bill defining what offenses would be considered violent crimes. The bill will only go into effect if the proposed amendment is approved by voters.

The Republican bill is scheduled for an Assembly vote Wednesday. It must also pass the Senate and be approved by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers to take effect.

Opponents have criticized the list of crimes proposed by Republicans as too extensive. It includes offenses such as watching a cockfight or leaving a firearm where a child gains access to it.

‘It could be devastating to us as a state and our prison and jail population will move out of control,’ said Jerome Dillard, executive director of Ex-Incarcerated People Organizing, or EXPO. The group lost a lawsuit last month seeking to block the bail amendment from the April ballot.

It’s not clear what crimes Democrats plan to include in their own list of violent offenses that could preclude someone from being released before trial. Democratic lawmakers said Thursday that they had not finished writing their proposals. Rep. Ryan Clancy, who is sponsoring the plan alongside Sen. Chris Larson, said it would likely not include misdemeanors.

Numerous Mar-a-Lago staff members have been subpoenaed as part of an investigation into former President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents, a source familiar with the situation confirmed to Fox News.

The source did not know the exact number of staff members who were issued court orders.

CNN reported that Trump’s communication aide Margo Martin appeared before a grand jury in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, though she declined to answer questions when approached by one of the media company’s reporters.

Special counsel Jack Smith is handling investigations into Trump over the FBI’s discovery of classified documents at his Palm Beach, Florida, home at Mar-a-Lago, as well as his alleged involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

According to CNN, Smith is looking for testimony from people in Trump’s inner circle, including Mar-a-Lago staffers, seeking an insight into things they may have seen or heard while working at the estate.

Sources told CNN that legal services for the staffers are being paid for by Trump entities.

Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith to investigate the entirety of the criminal probe into the unlawful retention of national defense information at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.

In the role, Smith will oversee the investigation into Trump’s retention of classified documents after leaving the White House and whether he obstructed the federal government’s investigation into the matter.

On Aug. 8, FBI agents raided Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago and seized classified records, including some marked as top secret, according to a warrant and property receipt.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart signed the warrant, giving agents the authority to seize ‘all physical documents and records constituting evidence, contraband, fruits of crime, or other items illegally possessed’ in violation of U.S. Code, including documents with classification markings and presidential records created between Jan. 20, 2017, and Jan. 20, 2021.

The property receipt showed FBI agents took approximately 20 boxes of items from the premises, including one set of documents marked as ‘Various classified/TS/SCI documents,’ which refers to top secret/sensitive compartmented information.

Classified documents have also been found at the homes of President Biden and former Vice President Mike Pence, and the Justice Department is handling investigations into those discoveries, as well.

Gov. Roy Cooper on Thursday urged the operators of a large western North Carolina paper mill set to shutter to find a way to keep it running, saying a closure would have a ‘devastating effect’ on the region and its people.

Pactiv Evergreen announced last week that it expected to close its Canton mill during the second quarter as part of a restructuring of its beverage merchandizing operations. About 1,100 employees are expected to lose their jobs.

In a letter, Cooper asked Pactiv Evergreen USA CEO Mike King to ‘explore all options’ to keep the mill operating, whether through a sale, repurposing of the plant, or through any other means.

The mill ‘has been in operation for more than a century and has been the lifeblood of that town and region,’ Cooper wrote. ‘Our priority remains to support the people affected by this unexpected closure by providing any available resources to their relief and recovery.’

The company said in its March 6 announcement that about 1,300 positions would be eliminated with the closing of the Canton mill and a converting facility in Olmsted Falls, Ohio.

Cooper also put the company on notice that the state would seek to recover $12 million in state-funded incentives received to keep the mill operating if it closed.

A Job Maintenance and Capital Development grant agreement announced in late 2014 between the state and two subsidiaries required the company to retain at least 800 full-time workers through the end of 2024, according to Cooper.

‘If you follow through your announced plans, we will demand full repayment of those funds,’ Cooper wrote.

Attorney General Josh Stein on Thursday sent a separate letter to King that went further, demanding his company repay the grant funds immediately based on ‘the company’s clear intent to breach’ the agreement. Stein also reminded King of Pactiv Evergreen’s responsibilities to address any outstanding environmental issues at the mill site.

Local officials have pledged resources to the workers who are expected to be laid off. Cooper’s state government budget proposal released on Wednesday recommended $5 million be set aside to support employee and community needs in Canton. The budget document said any incentives clawed back from the two subsidiaries would be used to help Canton.

The Michigan Court of Appeals on Thursday again rejected an attempt to revive charges in the Flint water scandal, ruling in favor of former Gov. Rick Snyder who was indicted on misdemeanors.

The attorney general’s office has repeatedly tried to convince judges that a landmark decision last summer from the Michigan Supreme Court didn’t actually doom the Flint water prosecution. But prosecutors continue to rack up losses.

In Snyder’s case, the appeals court swept aside the state’s appeal in a one-sentence order.

Snyder was governor in 2014 when Flint, under state management, began using the Flint River as a water source. But unlike the previous supply, the water wasn’t treated to reduce the impact on old pipes, unleashing lead throughout the city.

Snyder, who left office in 2019, was indicted on two misdemeanor counts of willful neglect of duty.

The state Supreme Court last June unanimously said a one-judge grand jury can’t issue indictments. As a result, charges have been dismissed against Snyder, former health director Nick Lyon and six others.

The attorney general’s office, however, isn’t giving up. It’s now asking the Supreme Court to take yet another look at Lyon’s case. He is blamed for some Legionnaires’ disease deaths in the Flint area during the water switch.

The case has been a ‘mess caused by the overly zealous prosecution,’ Lyon’s attorneys said in a recent filing.

Fourteen Republican lawmakers who have their pilot’s license are calling on President Biden to withdraw his nominee to lead the Federal Aviation Administration because he has ‘zero aviation experience.’

‘While Mr. Washington honorably served our nation in the Army, he did not serve in an aviation unit,’ the lawmakers wrote in a Thursday letter to Biden. ‘He is not a pilot, has zero aviation safety experience, and is entirely unqualified to lead the federal agency responsible for keeping the flying public safe.’

The Republicans pointed out that federal law requires the FAA administrator to have ‘experience in a field directly related to aviation,’ and said Biden’s nominee, Phil Washington, doesn’t make the cut.

‘The FAA cannot afford to be led by someone who needs on-the-job training, especially at a time when our aviation system is facing tremendous safety challenges such as multiple near-misses by airlines and the first nationwide ground stop of aircraft since 9/11,’ they wrote.

Signatories to the letter said they have collectively logged thousands of flight hours, including some for the military. But they said Washington ‘has never flown a plane, never worked for an airline or an aircraft manufacturer, and never served as an air traffic controller.’

‘His aviation experience is limited to working at the Denver airport for less than two years,’ they wrote, referring to his current role as CEO of the Denver International Airport. ‘In that role, Mr. Washington is primarily responsible for non-aviation matters, such as the airport’s shops, restaurants, parking, and buildings.’

The letter was signed by Sens. Ted Budd of North Carolina and Mike Rounds of South Dakota, along with 12 ‘congressional aviators.’

Washington’s lack of experience in the aviation industry led to tough questioning from Republicans in the Senate Commerce Committee. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, urged senators to investigate his background further and has called Washington ‘woefully unqualified.’

Cruz predicted last week that Washington would have trouble winning the votes for confirmation.

The Senate Commerce Committee is set to vote next week on Washington’s confirmation. A successful vote there would send the nomination to the Senate floor.