By Scott Bauer, AP

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — One of the most outspoken officers who defended the U.S. Capitol against rioters on Jan. 6, 2021, accused the Republican-backed candidate for Wisconsin Supreme Court on Jan. 28 of “clearly playing both sides” on the issue of pardoning of people who attacked the Capitol four years earlier.

Former Capitol police officer Harry Dunn said Supreme Court candidate Brad Schimel should clearly denounce President Donald Trump’s pardoning of about 1,500 people convicted for their roles in the Capitol riot.

“You can’t support an individual that believes it’s OK to pardon people who attack police officers,” Dunn said at a news conference in the Wisconsin State Capitol. “You can’t support that and also say you claim to back the blue.”

The attack on the U.S. Capitol became an issue in the race after Schimel said during a conservative talk radio interview earlier in January that he did not believe some of the non-violent offenders got a “fair shake” in the courts. Schimel is a former Wisconsin attorney general and currently a Waukesha County Circuit Court judge and Trump supporter.

Schimel on Jan. 27, when asked about Trump’s pardons, said he didn’t object to the president using his power, but “Anyone convicted of assaulting law enforcement should serve their full sentence.”

Dunn accused Schimel of playing both sides of the matter.

“If you believe that the individuals who attacked police officers should serve their sentence, then the only response to Donald Trump’s pardons should be that they’re wrong,” Dunn said.

Schimel’s campaign did not address Dunn’s visit specifically when asked for reaction. Instead, Schimel reiterated his previous comment that “attacking our men and women in uniform is never acceptable.”

Dunn testified before the Jan. 6 committee in Washington. Since then he formed a political action committee and has traveled the country to speak out against Trump, in particular his response to the Jan. 6 attack. Dunn quit working as a Capitol police officer after 15 years to run for Congress in Maryland in 2024. He lost in the primary.

Dunn’s appearance speaks to the national attention the race is getting in an early test of the electorate’s mood in a battleground state won by Trump. The 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court race broke the record for total spending on a court race in the U.S. and the 2025 contest is expected to go even higher.

The winner will determine whether Wisconsin’s highest court remains controlled by liberals — as it has since 2023 — or flips to conservatives, who had the majority for 15 years before then.

Elon Musk, the SpaceX and Tesla CEO who is a close ally of Trump, urged support for the Republican-backed candidate in a post on the social media platform X earlier in January. And former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, who leads a Democratic group that advocates for redistricting reform, plans to campaign in the state soon.

Abortion rights, congressional redistricting, election laws and union rights are all at stake in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race.

Schimel is endorsed in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race by 52 of the state’s 72 current county sheriffs, the Milwaukee Police Association and the Waukesha County Police Chiefs Association. He’s also been endorsed by 18 retired county sheriffs.

His opponent, Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford, lists no law enforcement endorsements, but she does have the backing of the state teachers union and around 100 current judges, including all four liberal justices on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

The election is April 1.