Woman says ’sexting’ Wis. DA harassed her as she sought pardon for teenage drug conviction

Woman says DA harassed her as she sought pardon

MADISON, Wis. — A law student says a Wisconsin prosecutor harassed her when she was seeking a pardon on a drug conviction after she had turned her life around.

Maria Ruskiewicz (russ-KAH’-witz) had earned two college degrees and been accepted to law school. She was seeking a pardon to wipe away her decade-old marijuana conviction.

Standing in her way was Calumet County District Attorney Ken Kratz, who had prosecuted her. His support was critical as Ruskiewicz asked Gov. Jim Doyle for the pardon she eventually received.

Ruskiewicz said Tuesday that Kratz sent her text messages implying that he wanted to have a sexual relationship with her in 2008. She’s the third woman in the past week to accuse Kratz of sending sexually harassing texts.