Rindfleisch to Make Plea Agreement Today

A former aide to Gov. Scott Walker would plead guilty to one felony and could face jail time under a plea agreement scheduled to be presented in court Thursday.

Kelly Rindfleisch faced a maximum of 14 years in prison for allegedly using her job as Walker’s deputy chief of staff in Milwaukee County to do campaign work.Her plea deal recommends jail time but leaves it up to a judge to decide how much.

The agreement does not explicitly require Rindfleisch to cooperate with prosecutors in an ongoing John Doe investigation involving several former Walker aides. But Madison Defense Attorney Stephen Meyer says he would not read too much into that, “Just because it’s not there doesn’t prevent her from doing that. As a matter of fact, the incentive for her to do that is to present herself in a better light at the time of sentencing.”

While this deal would bring an end to Rindfleisch’s case, Meyer says it’s just a small piece of the entire puzzle surrounding the John Doe, “To speculate that this means the John Doe is over, that it ends, is clearly inappropriate as much as to suggest that it’s going to continue and involve more people.”

Gov. Walker has not been charged with wrongdoing. Walker campaign spokesman Tom Evenson released a statement saying the governor “continues to fully cooperate with authorities while the legal process takes its course.”