Aisha Carr, former MPS school board member, charged with misconduct
MILWAUKEE - Prosecutors charged former Milwaukee Public Schools board member Aisha Carr with two felonies – misconduct in office and theft: false representation.
It all comes down to where prosecutors say Carr lived and where she said she lived. If convicted, she faces up to 13 ½ years in prison.
Carr won election to the MPS school board on April 6, 2021. Before taking office, she reported living outside the district she was elected to represent – District 4 – which is allowed. State law requires she would have to move into that district before taking office.
SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News
Prosecutors allege Carr kept living at her old address on 2nd Street, despite filling out paperwork and getting a driver's license for a new address on Brown Street. They accuse Carr of falsifying records to "make it appear as though she lived inside the district she represented during the time she was elected to represent said district."
The second charge deals with theft: false representation. In a criminal complaint, prosecutors described the conduct as "theft by fraud," adding "Carr should not have ever taken any money let alone continue to accept payment for holding a position she could not lawfully hold.
Aisha Carr
Prosecutors allege Carr's cousin, who owns the second property, told them Carr never lived at nor had a long-term stay at the Brown Street address. As part of the investigation, Milwaukee County investigators requested Carr’s cellphone GPS data, call logs and messages.
"An analysis of Carr’s cell phone records showed that that from April of 2021 through March of 2023, Carr spent the significant amount of time during those hours [overnight]…outside District #4," the criminal complaint said. "At no time did the records indicate Carr’s cell phone was connected to a tower consistent with her living at an Address in MPS District #4 until March of 2023."
Investigators said Carr also used that new address on a new driver's license, but utilities kept listing her at the old address. Investigators also said Carr still voted at the polling place correct for her old address in both 2022 and 2023.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX6 News app for iOS or Android.
The criminal complaint includes an e-mail Carr's account sent to MPS as her proof of residency to take office with these words: "I couldn’t find my last printout for my drivers license so I had to go back to the DMV to purchase another because of the tight timeline."
However, prosecutors said that email had "false information." Not only did Carr get a new driver’s license, the complaint said, but it was only on that date that she updated her address with the Department of Transportation to reflect a location within District 4.
In light of the felony charges, Carr’s attorney told FOX6: "Aisha Carr, a hero to many in Milwaukee and a champion of our community’s children, is being forced to face criminal allegations. Let me be clear: Ms. Carr is guilty of nothing more than being a working-class woman who stood up for kids and sought straight answers from Milwaukee’s failed education bureaucracy. There will be no end to our fight to vindicate Ms. Carr."
Featured
MPS board approves $1.5 billion budget, corrective action plan
The Milwaukee Board of School Directors approved its proposed $1.5 billion budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year at its board meeting Thursday, June 13.
Carr was critical of MPS administration, sparred with the teachers' union and opposed this year's MPS funding referendum.
In a search warrant affidavit, investigators admitted they got paperwork for this investigation from the Milwaukee Teachers' Education Association, which is the teachers' union, that showed Carr was listing the Brown Street property inside the district.
Carr abruptly resigned on Wednesday, May 1, with one year left of her term, as this investigation was playing out. Her resignation letter didn't give a reason, but simply stated it was a "great honor to serve the children of the city of Milwaukee."