A former Polk County District Attorney who is now an Assistant District Attorney in Burnett County is being charged with crimes that allege he secretly recorded himself in sexual activity with two separate women, one of whom, according to the criminal complaint, was allegedly the defendant in a case he was prosecuting at the time.
The Wisconsin Department of Justice announced this week that Daniel Steffen, age 50 of Osceola, was charged with three counts of representations depicting nudity. Each count is a Class I Felony, punishable by a fine of not more than $10,000 or imprisonment of not more than 3 years and 6 months, or both.
The complaint alleges Mr. Steffen created recordings of himself engaged in sexual activity with two separate victims at his Polk County home in 2018. The complaint further alleges that the victims told investigators that the recordings were made without their knowledge or consent.
Mr. Steffen is currently an Assistant District Attorney in Burnett County, and was previously the elected District Attorney for Polk County.
This investigation was led by the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigation. Assistant Attorney General David Maas is prosecuting the case.
As in any criminal proceeding, Mr. Steffen is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Steffen has been summoned to appear at an initial appearance on February 15, 2021, at 2:00 p.m.
This is the second time in recent history that the Burnett County District Attorney’s office has been under scrutiny for inappropriate contact with defendants. Former Burnett County District Attorney, William Norine, was officially reprimanded in 2019 for allegedly for having inappropriate contact with defendants through social media.
