����������������

� � � � � � �

���������������� !�" ����#$��% �&$' ()�*,+ ��-/. +�0$132 4 .,56.,.7&$��8 ($ 9' 1$13+�: � 2 ' +$1 0 ��������#

;�<$' 8 +�2 ($% +>= ��� 2@? + � 0 A�� +$1 ( 03B 8 ' �C8 ' B % ��% ' ��

D$EGF ' A� +�1 A' 1 . +$1$1 ��� 2 D$!GHIB ' 2 0 ��% ' �� D$JG* � 2 ' % ��KL� 1$2 M$MG<�� + ($8 �

a pu

blic

atio

n of

the

Wis

cons

in J

udic

iary

N O P Q R S O T

www.wicourts.gov

The Director of State Courts has introduced legislationthat would create seven new circuit court judgeships.

Identical bills were introduced in both houses on June 1. Thelegislation is in response to the Judicial Needs AssessmentStudy showing Wisconsin needs 18 additional judgeships tomaintain current service levels.

The bill would establish new circuit court branches as ofAugust 1, 2008 in six counties: Barron, Chippewa, Dodge,Green, Juneau, and St. Croix. It would also establish anadditional circuit court branch in Monroe County as ofAugust 1, 2010.

Senator Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee) and RepresentativeGarey Bies (R-Sister Bay) are the lead authors of thebills. Senator Taylor chairs the Senate Committee onJudiciary and Corrections; Representative Bies chairsthe Assembly Committee on Corrections and Courts.The bills have been referred to these two committees.

At its March meeting, the Committee of ChiefJudges examined 2006 calendar year filing data anddetermined the ranking of counties with the greatestneed for an additional judgeship. The primary factor indetermining need was the workload per judge, asshown in the Judicial Needs Assessment Study. TheCommittee recommended these seven counties beincluded in the legislation.

County boards in all seven counties have passedresolutions in support of establishing new circuit courtbranches. County support is a crucial element in

deciding to include a county in the request for additionaljudgeships because financing of the courts remains a state-county partnership. The counties will be responsible forpaying additional expenses for courtrooms, court personnel, and supplies.

No judgeships have been created in Wisconsin sinceAugust 2000. There are currently 241 circuit court branchesin the state.

The Director’s Office is working with the authors tofacilitate public hearings on the bills, so that action can betaken by the Legislature in the next several months. U

VXW7Y�Z�[�\ ]G_ bac_�d�de_ f�gihkj�Y7W�l�[�Y

In some of the highest-profile judicial races in memory,voters in April selected five new circuit court judges,

elevated two trial judges to the appellate courts, and backed three of the four incumbent judges who facedchallenges. One incumbent lost his seat, and 26 others werereelected without opposition. Here is the story.

Ziegler elected to Supreme CourtBy now it is well known that

Judge Annette K. Ziegler, whohas served in the WashingtonCounty Circuit Court for 10years and who took onadministrative duties as deputychief judge in the Third JudicialDistrict, won the Supreme Courtrace with an impressive 58percent of the vote. She succeedsthe retiring Justice Jon P. Wilcox(see The Third Branch, spring 2006).

Brunner elected to Court of AppealsLongtime Barron County

Circuit Court Judge Edward R.Brunner was elected withoutopposition to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, District III(headquartered in Wausau).Brunner succeeds Chief JudgeThomas Cane, who served for 26 years (see separate story, page 17).

Hinkfuss is new Brown County judgeGreen Bay Municipal Judge Timothy Hinkfuss will

become a Brown County Circuit Court judge after soundlydefeating Atty. Thomas Schober, a longtime civil trial lawyerwith the Green Bay firm of Davis & Kuelhau. Hinkfussgarnered about 65 percent of the vote.

Hinkfuss will succeed Judge Richard Dietz, who isretiring at the end of his term after 18 years on the bench (seeseparate story, page 17). In addition to his service as a

The Juneau County Courthouse, where a second judge is urgently needed.

m `�hn_ f�Zo[Gd [�l�gn_ j�foa�hn_ f7Z�\p_ foq�_ rs[of�[�tvuwW�Y�Z7[�\

Justice-elect Annette K. Ziegler

see Elections on page 13

Judge Edward R. Brunner

xzy|{~}��|��X�|�|�

�

When financial mogul Warren Buffett considers buyinga company, one of the qualities he looks for is “a

sustainable competitive advantage.”While the court system doesn’t have the same

type of competition that exists in the business world, I believe it is important in administering the court system that we still think in terms ofcompetitive advantage.

For us, I see competitive advantage as the measureof our performance against factors prevailing in theexternal environment. It is our ability to address thesefactors, such as recruiting and retaining talent, that willdetermine if we are able to keep our “company” viable.

We’ve worked hard to ensure we’re competitive inthe past, and we’ll continue to do so as we facechallenges ahead.

Last legislative session we were successful inboosting judicial compensation, and we’re making

it a priority again as the 2007-09 biennium approaches.Future potential candidates will be looking for reasons to seek a judgeship, and compensation is an important part ofthat picture.

While most judges don’t seek the office for financialreasons, salary requirements can’t be ignored in thecompetitive marketplace. Judges shouldn’t have to makesignificant economic sacrifices to serve the public. Statejudges now are paid less than many government attorneys,law professors, and their counterparts in federal courts.

We’ve also incorporated a variety of management toolsto ensure quality and effectiveness in the court system.

With the help of the National Center for State Courts, forexample, we conducted one of the most comprehensivejudicial workload studies in the nation. This study serves asthe objective basis for the judgeship bill in the Legislature,and it remains a valuable tool for assessing and managingjudicial workload throughout the state.

We also recently completed a classification study of non-judicial personnel to ensure we’re not falling behind in

compensation for other court system positions. This two-year process helped us identify needs and better structurecourt system personnel. As a result, we instituted a pay-for-performance program and made salary adjustments wherenecessary. We’ll work diligently to keep up to date.

We’re doing everything we can to remain competitive.But as an organization we also face some challenges. Ademographic study conducted by our management servicesteam shows that we will be experiencing significant changesin the coming years.

During the next ten years, roughly eight in ten Wisconsin judges will become eligible for retirement,compared to just about 20 percent of judges who are noweligible for retirement.

We’ll face increasing pressure to fill judgeships asretirements occur. In recent weeks alone, you’ve probablyheard about judgeship openings in Dane, Outagamie, andOneida counties due to retirements. We can expect this trendto continue, only at a more rapid pace in coming years.

Court reporters also are going to be retiring at a fasterpace, and the pool of stenographic reporters is limited. Ihave appointed a “Making the Record Committee” toidentify how technology may be used to help fulfill thisvital function.

Court staff, from administrators to support personnel,will also be affected. Currently, we are recruiting for twodistrict court administrators. We just hired a new clerk for the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, filling aposition that was open due to the retirement of a long-time employee.

While we can’t compete with the private sector at everylevel, especially when it comes to salaries of some privateattorneys, we need to continue doing everything we can tokeep the organization competitive.

As we move ahead to tackle these challenges, we willcontinue to innovate together, even if our best incentive is to“beat the competition.” �

��� �k�����i���i� �����G� ���������������G� ���o�~���o�����7���~�������������n� ��� �s�

A. John Voelker

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Brown is new Court of Appeals chiefJudge Richard S. Brown, who has served on the

Wisconsin Court of Appeals since 1978, has beennamed chief judge of the state’s intermediate appealscourt. He will begin his three-year term on August 1.

The Supreme Court selected Brown to succeedChief Judge R. Thomas Cane, who plans to retire thissummer when his term ends (see separate story, page 17). Cane has served as the Court of Appeals’chief judge since 1998.

In addition to maintaining a caseload, the Court ofAppeals’ chief judge handles a variety of managementduties for the four-district, 16-judge court. Brown will work with court staff on budget matters andpersonnel issues, and monitor the flow of cases – with the assistance of the presiding judges – toequalize the workload among the districts and ensure

prompt decisions.

Brown has been a leader in the Wisconsin courts and innational justice-related initiatives. He is chair of thecommittee that developed Wisconsin’s program for trainingand certifying court interpreters; he is a member of theSupreme Court Planning and Policy Advisory Committee(PPAC); and he has taken leadership roles in nationalorganizations including the American Bar Association andthe American Judicature Society. He is a frequent speaker atjudicial education programs.

Deets, Dyke, Foust selected as chiefsThe Wisconsin Supreme Court has selected circuit court

judges from Dane, Iowa and Manitowoc counties to serve asthe new chief judges for their respective judicialadministrative districts. Judges from Milwaukee and EauClaire counties were reappointed. Terms run from August 1,2007 through July 31, 2009.

� �����k�����o�������I�¡ 7�����G� ���i�¢�7��£¤�|�c� ��¥§¦w��¨7�����

Judge Richard S. Brown

see Chief judges on page 24

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

©eª|«~¬�­|®¯|°|°|±

²

Bridge is Court of Appeals judgeJudge Burneatta “Burnie” L. Bridge took office on

January 12 as Gov. Jim Doyle’s appointee to the WisconsinCourt of Appeals, District IV. She succeeds Judge David G.Deininger (see The Third Branch, winter 2007).

Judge Margaret J. Vergeront administered the oath ofoffice at a ceremonial investiture held in April. The

Governor was among thefeatured speakers at theceremony, which took place inthe Senate Chamber, and anumber of Supreme Courtjustices, Court of Appealsjudges, and cabinet secretariesalso attended.

Prior to her appointment,Bridge served as anadministrator in the stateDepartment of Health and

Human Services, chair of the Public Service Commission,and as a deputy attorney general and assistant attorneygeneral.

Bridge is the sixth female judge to serve on the Court ofAppeals, which was created in 1978. The other five are:Judge Martha Bablitch, who served from 1978-85 andrecently passed away (see obituaries); Judge Margaret J.Vergeront, who was first elected in 1994 and serves inDistrict IV; Justice Patience Drake Roggensack, who servedin District IV from 1996-2003 and is now a member of the

Wisconsin Supreme Court; Judge Patricia S. Curley, whowas first elected in 1996 and serves in District I; and JudgeJoan F. Kessler, who was elected in 2004 and serves inDistrict I.

Dane County welcomes new judgeJudge William E. Hanrahan, appointed to the Dane

County Circuit Court bench by Gov. Jim Doyle to succeedJudge Moria Krueger, who retired after 29 years (see TheThird Branch, winter 2007), was sworn in by Justice LouisB. Butler Jr. on February 15.

Prior to taking the bench, Hanrahan workedat the Department of Justice; most recently, hewas an assistant attorney general leading aspecialized unit that is responsible for theprosecution of fraud and crimes involvingresidents of healthcare facilities. Hanrahan alsoheaded the state’s first elder abuse prosecutionunit and directed numerous high profilecriminal matters such as the investigation intothe bribery scandal involving formerWinnebago County District Attorney JosephPaulus and the successful prosecution of anindividual and his itinerant magazine-sales corporation formultiple homicides resulting from the crash of a companyvan filled with teenage workers near Janesville. Before hejoined the Department of Justice, Hanrahan was an assistantdistrict attorney in Milwaukee.

NEW FACES

Judge Burneatta “Burnie” L. Bridge

Judge William E. Hanrahan

In early May the Joint Committee on Finance, theLegislature’s budget-writing committee, took executive

action on the court budget provisions included in 2007Senate Bill 40, the Governor’s biennial budget bill.

First, the committee approved the Governor’s proposal toprovide an additional $19.1 million over the biennium to thecircuit court support payment program, to be funded throughan increase in the real estate transfer fee. The programprovides state payments to counties for support of circuitcourt operations. While the bill left the current distributionformula unchanged, the committee modified the formula asproposed in the Court’s budget request. We believe the newformula will provide a better measure of circuit courtactivity when allocating payments to counties.

Second, while the committee approved requiring countiesto adhere to a uniform chart of accounts when recordingcourt financial transactions and authorizing the Director ofState Courts Office to audit county court financialinformation, the committee authorized a two-year projectposition rather than a permanent auditor position and addedsome program requirements.

Third, the committee narrowed the scope of the directorof state courts’ authority to establish and charge fees for use

of the circuit court automated information systems to feesfor use of electronic filing (e-filing) only. While thelanguage came from a Court request that was part of a largere-filing proposal, legislative and public concerns arose thatthe director would begin charging fees for use of theWisconsin Circuit Court Access Web site, which providesaccess to the public records of the Consolidated CourtAutomation Programs (CCAP).

The committee also approved: (1) requiring a qualifiedinterpreter when needed for all cases and regardless ofindigency, with increased funding for county reimbursement;(2) a position and funding for required state match for a newfederal Children’s Court Improvement training grant; (3) ajustice coordinator position to implement priority courtprojects; and (4) $10,000 for a courthouse safety trainingprogram.

Finally, the committee added an attorney position andfunding to recreate the Judicial Council as a separate entity.

Most of the Court’s budget proposals remain in thebudget bill. However, the bill is subject to change until finalenactment, which is not expected until mid-summer at theearliest. We will keep you informed on furtherdevelopments. ³

´eµ·¶�¸|¹¢º�¶�¸X»·¸|¼�½¿¾cµ¡ÀÁÀÁ¶Â¹@¹@½§½Ã»§¼§¹@Äŵ·¸o¼§µ·Æ�Çk¹¢È�Æ|ɧÊ�½§¹�Ä

by Deborah Brescoll, budget and policy officer

see New Faces on page 25

ËzÌ|Í~Î�Ï|ÐÑXÒ|Ò|Ó

Ô

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Rock County judges have been hard at work this spring,collaborating with the county’s Criminal Justice

Collaborating Council (see separate story, page 5) to ironout the details of two programs designed to improve thehandling of drug cases and domestic violence cases. Here isan update.

Judicial oversight in domestic abuse cases

After attending a winter conference aimed at improvingskills in the handling of domestic violence cases, JudgeDaniel T. Dillon is spearheading an effort to enhance

Rock County’s domestic abuseprogram, modeling it after MilwaukeeCounty’s Judicial Oversight Initiative(JOI) project.

Rock County currently has adomestic violence interventionprogram (DVIP) available to thosedeemed eligible by the prosecutingattorney. Suitable participants aregenerally first-time misdemeanoroffenders who must first complete adrug and alcohol screening. Repeatoffenders are unlikely to be accepted into the DVIP for a secondtime; thus they are the population thatthe new program is intended to serve.

In Rock County, as in Milwaukee,the program requires offenders toappear regularly before the judgealong with their probation officer toensure that progress is being made.“Judicial oversight is the commondenominator that judges andprobation officers are finding that

makes a difference,” Dillon said. After the plea is taken, sentence is withheld and

offenders are placed on probation with imposed and stayedjail sentences and treatment requirements. “All of the specialcourts – the drug courts, the domestic abuse courts –monitor the behavior of the offender frequently in court todetermine whether the person is following the program thatwas scheduled at the time of sentencing. If they fail, theconsequences are immediate,” Dillon said.

An independent evaluation of Milwaukee’s programconducted by The Urban Institute suggested that battererswho are required to appear before a judge as part of theirprobation are 47 percent less likely to be arrested for adomestic violence crime than those who were on probationprior to the JOI project. “Milwaukee is a state-of-the-artprogram and it’d be nice to get to that,” Dillon said.

Dillon cited Judge Marshall Bertram Murray, MilwaukeeCounty Circuit Court, as the authority on domestic abusecases. Murray’s work has been key in the development of

Milwaukee County’s JOI project. Another model project, inLa Crosse County, owes much of its success to JudgeMichael Mulroy who has led the effort. Murray and Mulroyalso attended the December conference, along withMilwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Daniel A. Noonanand Price County Circuit Court Judge Douglas T. Fox.

A new drug courtIn March, Rock County Circuit Court launched its

drug treatment court, which is intended to help offendersand help ease the demand for jail space, said Judge John W.Roethe, who oversees the court.

In opening the court, Rock County joins at least 13 otherWisconsin counties that have begun treatment courts. Thegoal is to address the root of a problem for many offenders:substance abuse and addiction.

Roethe said he hopes that it will be more effective insome cases than fines and incarceration. In Rock County, asin counties across the state, there is a space crunch in thejail. The county already sends inmates to other counties, andis studying the possibility of building a new, $140 millionjail, Roethe said.

The new court is modeled after Dane County’s drugcourt. Qualifying for, and getting through, drug court willnot be easy. First, only offenders who don’t demonstrateviolent or strong anti-social behavior will be considered,Roethe said. Candidates will go through a vigorousscreening process, which includes defense attorneys,prosecutors, treatment specialists, and the judge. When allparties agree that a candidate is appropriate, the participantmust sign a contract agreeing to the terms of the court.

The process amounts to a plea agreement with a signed contract, whereby an offender must achieve certaingoals to graduate from the nine-month program.

“It’s not easy to get through,” Roethe said.Participants must agree to

active treatment and random drugscreening. The program alsoincludes components for angermanagement and education,which are geared towardemployment. Participants alsomust make weekly courtappearances. As in othercounties, participants will appeartogether in open court,addressing their problems in eachothers’ presence.

Costs of the drug court initially will be paid through agrant, but Rock County will have to demonstrate itscommitment by picking up the costs after three years. Õ

LEADERSHIPÖ�×�ØÚÙbÛ�×�Ü�Ý�ÞiߢÛáà â�Ø�ÜGà Þ·Û�×�Ü�âIÞäã å�Ü7Ý�Ø|æ�ç7è¢Þiéê×Ãà Ý�Ý�×Xë^åÚÞnà ë/çoì�âk×�ízâkå�î�è

by Brigid Moroney, court information intern

Judge Daniel T. Dillon

Judge James P. Daley

Judge John W. Roethe

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

ïeð|ñ~ò�ó|ôõ|ö|ö|÷

ø

Many communities in Wisconsin have learned that inorder to analyze and effectively respond to local

public safety concerns, collaboration is a necessity. Thedevelopment of policy-focused teams, widely known ascollaborating councils, provides a forum for local justice system professionals and community leaders to come together and focus on justice system improvementsand initiatives.

The Rock County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council(CJCC) was established in May 2006 by the Rock CountyBoard of Supervisors to improve the overall functioning ofthe local criminal justice system. The 17-member groupestablished its priorities based on public input and therecommendations of a local ad hoc jail alternatives studycommittee. The goals of the Rock County CJCC are to:

ùEnhance public safetyùMake suggestions to provide better outcome forsystem users, their families, and the public at largeùMake suggestions for more efficient use ofresourcesùIncrease communication among the criminal justicecommunity and the publicùEliminate duplicationùProvide coordination across departments andbudget areasùProvide ongoing oversight for new or alternative programs

Key to the success of a CJCC is having the rightdecision-makers at the table. In short, the CJCC members

must be in a position to makedecisions on behalf of thevarious groups they represent.The team must develop acommon vision of public safetyfor the community and take abroader view of responsibilities.

The Rock County CJCC,chaired by County Board Sup.Neil Deupree, includes a circuitcourt judge (Judge James P.Daley), who said the diverse

membership has improved problem solving. “Our collaborating council is a diverse group of

professionals and community members who deal withextremely difficult community issues,” he said. “Thebreadth of experience at the table allows us to problem-solve and come up with ideas and solutions that weotherwise would not have considered.”

Among the Council’s members are the school districtsuperintendent, the sheriff, the district attorney, a publicdefender, the chief of police, and representatives from:county human services, organized labor, the Department of

Health and Family Services, the Department of Corrections,the Rock County Juvenile Detention Center, Mercy HealthSystem, and two local community organizations. Themeetings are open to the public, and citizens also play avital role in the process.

As experiences in Rock County and elsewhere havedemonstrated, the involvement of judges is criticallyimportant. Judges are able to offer a unique perspective onthe administration of justice, and they have the ability toconvene the community leaders who must be part of theplanning and policy making.

“The role of the judiciary on these types committeescannot be overstated,” Daley said. “It assists us in bothhelping to educate the public and criminal justicecommunity and understanding their concerns further. Judgesmust be a part of the strategy to prevent future crime.”

Examples of the work of the Rock County CJCCabound:

ùWith funding from a state Treatment Alternatives andDiversion (TAD) grant, the Council implemented a jail diversion program that targets non-violentoffenders whose crimes are related to their alcohol ordrug addictions.

ùThe CJCC has endorsed the expansion of the electronicmonitoring program that is operated by the Sheriff’sDepartment. Once fully implemented, the program willmonitor an average of 70-80 individuals per day.

ùThe Council is in the process of reviewing differentmodels of community service programming throughoutthe country and hopes to expand this as a strategy foralternative sentencing in the near future.

ùThe Council worked with the National Institute ofCorrections (NIC), which has agreed to conduct a local criminal justice system assessment and provide recommendations on areas of possible system improvement.

ùThe Council is also conducting its own “gap analysis” to identify areas where sufficient resources exist andwhere additional treatment and wrap around services are needed. ú

For more information about coordinating councils andcollaborative problem solving, and to view the directory ofWisconsin coordinating councils, visit the PPAC EffectiveJustice Strategies Web page atww.wicourts.gov/about/organization/programs/alternatives.htm

û�ü�ý|þoÿ�ü��������¢ÿ��7ÿ�ÿ�� � ����� ����ü�������� ü���������ý�ý������by Erin Slattengren, policy analyst, Office of Court Operations

Neil Deupree

����� �"!�#$�%�%�&

'

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

The Wisconsin court system launched a pilot project onApril 10 in Manitowish Waters and April 11 in Eau

Claire to further assist people who are representingthemselves in court proceedings. The project’s goal is tofoster communication between local courts and publiclibraries in an effort to better meet the legal service needs ofself-represented litigants.

Leading the initiative are the Tenth Judicial District,which consists of 13 northwestern Wisconsin counties, andthe Wisconsin State Law Library. The Indianhead FederatedLibrary System and the Northern Waters Library Service co-sponsored the April programs, which were aimed atinforming public library staff about the various court-relatedservices and information currently available to assist self-represented litigants.

The project’s first component was an information andtraining session for a group of librarians and staff fromlibraries around District Ten. The second component willsend clerks and registers in probate into every public libraryin their respective counties in order to foster relationshipsand provide further information related toavailable circuit court resources.

“The Wisconsin court system andpublic libraries have a strong, mutualinterest in helping citizens to accesscurrent and reliable legal information,”said Tenth District Chief Judge BenjaminD. Proctor. It has been our goal toimprove access to the courts for citizenswho choose, for whatever reason, tocome to court without the assistance of anattorney. Doing so improves public trustand confidence in the legal system.”

Featured speakers at the first eventwere Judge Edward F. Vlack III, St. CroixCounty Circuit Court; State LawLibrarian Jane Colwin; Atty. Ann

Zimmerman, who, as executive assistant to the ChiefJustice, is responsible for coordination of statewide pro seefforts; District Court Administrator Gregg Moore, District10; Atty. Robert Hagness, the District Ten coordinator forthe Access to Justice project; Register in Probate Jean Gay,Eau Claire County; and Clerk of Circuit Court KarenHepfler, Chippewa County.

This pilot project is the latest in a series of steps thecourt system has taken to improve access to the courts forpeople who are representing themselves, and it is hoped thatthe program can be replicated. It is an outgrowth of theAmerican Judicature Society Conference on Self-Representation held in Des Moines in September, where aneight-member team from Wisconsin developed an actionplan that included three pilot projects to provide assistanceto self-represented litigants. The other two projects beingdeveloped include a self-help center and a pro bonotelephone assistance project for self-represented litigants indivorce cases. (

)+*-, .0/213*�4�13*�5�*�6�7�*�89,2: 7;: <�=�6�7 5�> ?@:2, A�7B4�13ADCE*�F�7G.HA�F�I�5�*�5�A�6J4�I�K ,": F9,": K�13=�1�: *�5by Ann Zimmerman, pro se coordinator

A group of public librarians and staff from libraries in northwest Wisconsin listensas Judge Edward F. Vlack III, St. Croix County Circuit Court, discusses thechallenges that self-represented litigants present to the courts.

Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson markedthe opening of the La Crosse County Law

Information Center at the La Crosse Countycourthouse on February 23. Staffed by volunteerattorneys, retirees, and paralegal students, thecenter will provide free guidance to peoplerepresenting themselves in court proceedings.

Abrahamson said such programs are neededas the number of litigants without attorneysincreases. “Navigating the legal system isconfusing without a lawyer,” she said. “The courts have attempted to make the process easier

by developing simplified forms and clinicswhere litigants can go for help.”

Family Court Commissioner Gloria Doyleand Doyle’s assistant, Tammy Pedretti, alongwith the La Crosse county circuit court judges,helped to develop the information center.Many of the center’s resources come from theLa Crosse County Bar Association, whosemembers provide legal assistance. Alsoparticipating in the effort are Legal Action ofWisconsin, the Retired Seniors VolunteerProgram, and Western Technical College. (

)+* , .L/"13*�4�13*�5M*�6�7 *�8N,": 7;: <�=�6�7�5�> OD=JP�13A�5�5�*JA�4�*�6�5Q6�*�RSOD=�RSTU6�.HA�1WVX=�7�: A�6JP�*�6�7�*�1

Chief JusticeShirley S. Abrahamson

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Y[Z�\ ]"^�_`�a�a�b

c

The Wisconsin Supreme Court traveled to Wautoma inApril to hear two cases as part of its Justice on Wheels

outreach program. An estimated 250 people packed into thecourthouse to watch the oral arguments.

Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson chose Wautoma inhonor of Justice Jon P. Wilcox, who will be retiring fromthe Supreme Court this summer. Wilcox served asWaushara County Circuit Court judge from 1979-92,stepping down upon his appointment to the Supreme Court.During his time on the circuit court, he served as the SixthJudicial District’s chief judge. Wilcox also representedWaushara and its environs in the State Assembly, where heserved from 1969-75.

Prior to each hearing, Abrahamson spoke to theassembled crowd about Wilcox and his many contributionsas a public servant. d

e+f�g�h3i�jkiJl�m�f�hWnBo[p q[p n�q�r�s�f�n�m�jks

Justice Jon P. Wilcox listens as Chief Justice Shirley S.Abrahamson details his professional accomplishments andexplains that he has been lobbying the Court to visitWautoma since he took office in 1992.

Court security was identified as a top priority in PPAC’sbiennial report titled Critical Issues: Planning

Priorities for the Wisconsin Court System. This topic wasdiscussed at length during the November PPAC meeting,and the committee decided to establish a state-level policysubcommittee to address court security and thecorresponding recommendations outlined in Critical Issues.These recommendations include: revising/updating SCR70.39; courthouse security audits; courthouse securitytraining; development of a comprehensive security plan;incident reporting and tracking; and extending outreach onthis topic to educate those outside of the court system.

The new subcommittee will meet for the first time onJune 7. The following are the new members of the PPACCourt Security Subcommittee.t

Judge Michael O. Bohren, Waukesha County (co-chair)tJudge Sarah B. O’Brien, Dane County (co-chair)tJudge Wayne J. Marik, Racine CountytJudge Dennis J. Mleziva, Kewaunee CountytBeth Perrigo, deputy district court administratortLt. Bryon Schaefer, Lt. of Court Service, Sheboygan CountytBob Brown, architect, Ayers Associates, Eau ClairetKris Deiss, clerk of court Washington County tBill Morgan, Green County corporation counseltSallyanne Danner, court commissioner, Fond du Lac CountytKarl Jeske, Racine County Building and FacilitiesmanagertPolice Chief Jeff Schinzing, Village of GrantsburgtBill Weigel, City of Verona Municipal Court judge (alsoof the Office of Lawyer Regulation)tSharon Schmeling, Jefferson County Board chair d

u+uwv ll�m�f�hWnBe@i�x�f�h;p n�yQe@f�z�x�m�jXj{p n�n i�iv g�g�m p |�n�i�}by Erin Slattengren, policy analyst, Office of Court Operations The Grant Info Center (GIC) available through

the CourtNet Intranet site is a resourceproviding information on court-related grantfunding sources and opportunities. It is the goal ofthe GIC to position the court system to becompetitive in obtaining grant funds and toconsolidate ad hoc efforts that are currentlyunderway or being contemplated. Visit the site onCourtNet by clicking on the "Grant Info Center"tab on the left side of the main page.

Highlight: Grant review processstreamlined

The Grant Info Center Committee has recentlyupdated and streamlined the grant proposal reviewand notification process. The streamlined processwill ensure that grant projects requiring thesupport of the Director of State Courts and/or theWisconsin Supreme Court are carefully reviewedfrom a programmatic, strategic planning, andbudget perspective. The process also will helpfacilitate technical support in the beginning stagesof a proposal.

Those pursuing grant funding that does notrequire state level support are asked to take part ina shortened version of this process to facilitatedevelopment of an inventory of projects takingplace throughout the Wisconsin court system. Theinventory will be a resource for others with similarprogrammatic interests. dContact Erin Slattengren in the Office of CourtOperations at erin.slattengren@wicourts.gov forfurther information about the Grant Info Center orgrant prospects. See also Administrative Bulletin07-04 located in both the "Bulletins" and "Grant InfoCenter" links of CourtNet.

l�m�f�hWn;~�i�nB��h�s�|�n��U|��HmJl�i�|�n�i�h

����� �"����������

�

���������������������D� � ����� ��¡����The Wisconsin branch of the National Alliance on

Mental Illness has chosen Judge Edward E. Leineweber,Richland County Circuit Court, to receive its 2007Community Service Award.

Leineweber was selected for his work to establishthe Richland County Assistance to Kin of Mentally IllPersons (AKOMI) program, which provides trainedvolunteers to connect with relatives of a person whois subject to an involuntary mental healthcommitment.

“We present this award to you with the knowledgethat equitable and proactive treatment of persons withmental illness in our court systems can be a reality,”wrote NAMI-Wisconsin President Frank Mixdorf.

Leineweber said the program was developed underthe auspices of Court & Community, Inc., a non-profitthat he helped to start about eight years ago to

improve how the court serves the needs of the community. “The idea behind AKOMI came out of watching families

[that] often appeared to be frightened, bewildered and totallylost in the process, not knowing what was happening, orwhat to expect next,” he said.

As part of the program, written materials have beendeveloped that include contact information for various staffmembers, so that families have a place to turn when theyhave questions or concerns.

A related initiative is a series of mental illness trainingworkshops offered in Richland County over the last twoyears. The workshops help justice system personnel withlittle or no formal training in mental health issues to acquirebasic knowledge and skills to deal with mentally ill peoplein crisis situations. Targeted personnel include police, jailers,court staff, social workers, group home workers, probationand parole officers, and health care workers.

The award was presented in May in Wisconsin Rapids.

¢+£ �¤� ���3¥���� £ ���J� ����¦§��� H��©;� ªX��¬«�� � ��­D��ªX����©�®�¥�� ¥���Former Milwaukee County Chief Judge Michael J.

Skwierawski, who is president of the Milwaukee BarAssociation, has been selected to receive the State Bar ofWisconsin 2006 Lifetime Jurist Achievement Award.

The annual award recognizes a jurist who made adifference during a long tenure on the bench. It waspresented at the State Bar’s Annual Convention, May 9-11 atthe Midwest Airlines Center, Milwaukee.

“During his 25 years on the circuit court, JudgeSkwierawski implemented many innovations that make theMilwaukee court system the highly effective system it istoday,” said Beth Hanan, chair of the State Bar’s Bench andBar Committee. “He was instrumental in introducing jurytrial schedule rules that reduce delays in trial dates, speedingup the processing of criminal matters, and creating a courtinterpreter program for non-English speaking litigants aswell as a pro se center.”

Skwierawski was appointed in 1978 and elected to fourterms. He served five years as chief judge and as chair of

the Committee of Chief Judgesbefore he retired in August 2003.He also was a member of theSupreme Court Planning andPolicy Advisory Committee andthe Advisory Committee onSentencing Guidelines.

Before becoming a judge,Skwierawski was in privatepractice for eight years andserved as a Milwaukee Countyassistant district attorney for threeyears. He is now a mediator with an emphasis oncommercial litigation and complex civil cases.

In nominating Skwierawski, Milwaukee County CircuitCourt Judge Michael D. Guolee wrote: “Service and hardwork have always been part of his code of conduct and thatcontinues to this date. He continues to be a teacher of thelaw at various seminars and serves on various committees inour legal and general community. Because of his excellentreputation in the legal community, he was recently electedPresident of the Milwaukee Bar Association.”

Past recipients of the Lifetime Jurist Achievement Awardinclude the following circuit court judges: Edward R.Brunner, Barron County; Lee E. Wells, Milwaukee County;Peter G. Pappas, La Crosse County; Patrick T. Sheedy,Milwaukee County; Mark J. Farnum, Rock County; P.Charles Jones, Dane County; Edwin C. Dahlberg, RockCounty; and Myron L. Gordon, who served on theMilwaukee County Circuit Court, the Wisconsin SupremeCourt, and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

°�ªX± ² ��³M�����Q���������3��JH���´ ��±�¥��3¥ ²"² � ² ��J�����µ­[� «��

Director of State Courts A. John Voelker presented thesecond round of Director’s Recognition Awards inDecember. The awards are reserved for court employeeswho have provided unparalleled service to the court system.Winners included:

¶Bridget Bauman, benchmarks coordinator, Office ofCourt Operations, for exceptional performance related tothe Children’s Court Improvement Program.

¶Terri Borrud, forms and records officer, Office of CourtOperations, for coordinating changes made to more than100 forms as a result of changes in probate andguardianship laws.

¶Mary Brister, legal assistant, Court of Appeals, forhandling an unusually heavy workload during atemporary staff shortage.

¶Connie Dillon, court reporter in the Tenth JudicialDistrict, for accepting extra assignments and helping outin three other judicial districts during a staff shortage.

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Judge Edward E. Leineweber

AWARDS

Judge Michael J. Skwierawski

see Awards on page 9

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

·[¸�¹ º"»�¼½�¾�¾�¿

À

ÁAndrew Goodnough, lead software engineer, CCAP, forleadership on several software infrastructureimprovements and transitioning CCAP to a new codeversioning system and developing new testing tools.

ÁRita Lord, former deputy clerk for the WisconsinSupreme Court and Court of Appeals (now judicialassistant to Supreme Court Justice Louis B. Butler Jr.)for going above and beyond the call of duty to helpprocess a court order in a high-profile case.

ÁSarah Motif, legal assistant, Court of Appeals, forhelping to handle an unusually high workload during astaffing shortage.

ÁAngie Semrau, senior business process analyst, CCAP,for delivering many high-profile and successful Webapplications, including changes to the Wisconsin CircuitCourt Access Web site.

ÂÄÃ�Å�Æ�Ç�È�É É�ÈJÊ�Ë�Ì�Ë�Å�Í� Î"Ï ÐÑÃ�Ç�Ò�È�È�ÓEÇ�Ô�Õ�ÈJudge Maxine A. White, Milwaukee County Circuit

Court, received the Alumni Service to the CommunityAward as part of Marquette University’s 2007 AlumniNational Awards Dinner on April 28.

A 1985 graduate ofMarquette Law School, Whitehas been a leader in theWisconsin judiciary and in theNational Association of WomenJudges (NAWJ). Among manyhonors, White has been therecipient of the State Bar Judgeof the Year Award and theNAWJ Judge Mattie BelleDavis Award, the YWCA ofGreater Milwaukee Outstanding

Woman of Achievement Award, and more. This latest award is part of a program by Marquette

to recognize alumni who contribute extensively to their communities.

Ö�Ç�ŵ×QØ�à Î"Ï2Î ÙÚÙGÉ Å�Ã Î Ì Î Ì�Õ�Û¬Ü ÝkË�Ì�ÕÔ Î Å3È�Þ�É Ë�ŵ×QÐJÎ ÌJÃ�РÃ�Å�Ô�ÍThe State Bar in April presented achievement awards to

10 local bar associations for 12 public service projects,including two accomplished in collaboration with state court staff – a Hmong legal glossary and a jury bailifftraining program.

The Local Bar Grant Competition (LBGC) awards, werepresented in April by committee chair Ben Brantmeier.

“The caliber of the local community service programsput forth by local bars is exceptional,” said Brantmeier.“These awards recognize the ability and willingness of members of these local bar associations to address needsin our society and help to creatively and effectively assistthose public needs.”

The Marathon County Bar Association received anAward of Exceptional Achievement for developing a HmongLegal Glossary in conjunction with the Director of StateCourts Office. Believed to be the first Hmong-English legalglossary in the United States, it defines more than 800common court terms and suggests equivalent White Hmongphrases for many of them. The glossary is useful to thecourts, law enforcement, social services, researchers,teachers, and state government as a resource for interpreting legal proceedings, translating forms, andtraining interpreters.

The glossary has been translated into White Hmong asthe predominant dialect in America and the one mostcommonly used in court.

Three Hmong interpreters with a strong background incourt work provided translating and editing for the glossary.They are: PaDer Lilian Lawbeerjour (Language Solutions, Milwaukee); Kazoua Yang (RamseyCounty Interpreter Coordinator, St. Paul); and Ying LeeXiong (Urgent Translations, Wausau).

The glossary grew from a collaboration of the Wisconsincourts, the Minnesota Translation Lab, the Marathon County Bar Association Southeast Asian OutreachCommittee, and contributors throughout Minnesota andWisconsin. The project was funded by grants from theWisconsin Department of Workforce Development (Bureauof Migrant, Refugee, and Labor Services) and the State Barof Wisconsin.

The Racine County Bar Association received an Awardof Outstanding Achievement for helping to develop thestatewide Jury Bailiff Training Program, which providesorientation and a training curriculum for civilian bailiffs anddeputy sheriffs. Last year, about 400 people at 53 sitesstatewide participated – many of them via videoconference.

The sessionoriginated from the PyleCenter at UW-Madison.It was designed to helpensure that bailiffs havethe tools they need tointeract with jurors in amanner that reflectspositively on the court system.

District Two CourtAdministrator KerryConnelly steered theproject as committeechair. District Five CourtAdministrator GailRichardson, one of thecourts’ resident expertson jury issues, was alsoinvolved. Chief Judge Gerald P. Ptacek, Racine CountyCircuit Court, and Judge Jean W. DiMotto, MilwaukeeCounty Circuit Court, helped to develop the curriculum and

Judge Maxine A. White

AWARDS continued from page 8

see Awards on page 26

District Court Administrator Kerry Connelly (left) joinedState Bar President Steve Levine (second from left),Racine County Bar President Wynne Laufenberg, andJudge Gerald P. Ptacek at the presentation of theAward of Outstanding Achievement for the Jury BailiffTraining Program.

ß[à�á â"ã�äå�æ�æ�ç

èêé

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

ë�ì�íïî�ð�ñ;ò ó�ôJõ ö î�ôJíJò2ö"ö�÷Hó�ð�ø�ù�ó�ôú ò ù�î�ù�ñ�ì�ûBõ�û3ì�õ�î�û3ì ú ô�ì�ù�ù�ü¬ò ô�÷HóJù�ý�î�û;ò ô�þ

Wisconsin court staff and child protection workers haveidentified two primary issues for inclusion in a new actionplan that is being developed to improve court outcomes forchildren who have been abused and neglected. First, anemergency preparedness plan to track children in the childwelfare system and maintain their legal cases in the event ofa disaster should be developed. Second, an interface betweenCCAP and eWiSACWIS, the state’s child welfareinformation system, should be created to share data acrosssystems efficiently while at the same time protecting privacy.

These recommendations came from the team thatWisconsin sent to a national summit in New York City inMarch. The team was comprised of A. John Voelker, Directorof State Courts; Judge Mary Triggiano, Milwaukee CountyCircuit Court; Mark Campbell, bureau director in theDivision of Children and Family Services; Michelle JensenGoodwin, Children’s Court Improvement Program director;and District Court Administrator Patrick Brummond.

Wisconsin was one of 42 states that sent a team to theSummit. As part of the program, the state’s team metindividually to determine needed and available resources,what other agencies and officials should be involved instrengthening foster care and services to families andchildren, what programs and strategies developed in otherstates may be applicable in Wisconsin, and how best toaddress new federal requirements for improving the safetyand well-being of children, the permanence of placements,and the timeliness of child protection proceedings.

ÿ ø�ù�ñ;ò ð�ì���ø�ñ;ö ì�û ò ù��kó�ó�ñBð�ó�ø�ûµñ��Eø�û�ò ù�ñJustice Louis B. Butler Jr. was one of three judges

selected to serve on Southwestern Law School’s 2007 mootcourt panel in April.

The intramural competition gives first-year law school

students the opportunity to develop appellate brief writingand oral advocacy skills.

Butler, who also served as a jurist on the “final bench”last year, served alongside Judge Steven Levinson, anassociate justice of the Supreme Court of Hawaii; JudgeCharles R. Wilson, U.S. Court of Appeals.

Butler said some of the arguments were better than manyheard before the Supreme Court.

��� ð�ó�ô�ù�ø-ö ñ�ù�ò ô���î�ý�û3î-ò ô

Court Information Officer Amanda K. Todd was selectedby the American Bar Association to help the Kingdom ofBahrain to develop a new public outreach office this spring.Bahrain is a Persian Gulf nation that is working to build ademocratic government.

Todd led top government officials and members of thebar through a strategic planning exercise designed toestablish goals and set priorities. From this, she developed aplan that will guide the Ministry of Justice in establishing acommunications office. In addition, she conducted mediatraining workshops, working with a local video crew andmany language interpreters to help participants improve theirinterviewing skills, learn to write press releases, and begin todevelop rules governing cameras in the courts. �

WISCONSIN CONNECTS

District Court Administrator Gail Richardson answers questionsabout the state court system as posed by judges visiting fromTurkmenistan. Madison was one of many stops the groupmade while studying courts in the United States as part of aprogram sponsored by the U.S. State Department.

Court Information Officer Amanda K. Todd meets with Ministryof Justice officials in the Middle East nation of Bahrain.

Director of State Courts John Voelker was a featured speakerat the Wisconsin Counties Association’s legislative exchange,which was held in Madison in February. Voelker emphasizedthe importance of partnerships with counties and otherstakeholders in the criminal justice system heading into the2007-09 state budget process.

� ø�û� �ì��Xì�ô ò ù�ñ î�ô��[ò ù[ò ñ�ó�û�ù � ó�ì ö �ì�ûGù�õ�ì�î� �ù�î�ñ�� ���

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

���������� !�"�"�#

$%$

Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, R-West Salem, tookthe bench alongside La Crosse County Circuit Court

Judge Ramona A. Gonzalez as part of the Judicial Ride-Along Program on March 26.

The visit gave Huebsch a first-hand look at the criminalintake court, which featured about 25 cases that afternoon.He said he was most struck by the number of defendantswho had been in court before.

“It was an eclectic group that came before us. The judgeseemed to know a good number of the people who werethere,” Huebsch said.

Huebsch is one of about a half dozen legislators whohave ‘ridden’ along to get a close-up look at local courts in 2007.The program also gives legislatorsa chance to discuss with judgesthe impact of legislation on thedelivery of justice.

As a result of his visit,Huebsch said he’d like to seereview of income standards forindigent people and of the processused to reimburse privateattorneys appointed to representindigent defendants. The systemneeds to ensure balance betweenconstitutional rights andtaxpayers’ ability to pay, he said.

While in court, Huebsch saidhe was taken aback when thejudge recruited an attorney fromthe courtroom audience for onelow-income defendant.

Another legislator who wasalong for the ride on March 26 was Rep. Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, who sat with Winnebago County Circuit CourtJudge Scott C. Woldt. Hintz said he, too, was concernedabout the number of repeat offenders making courtappearances.

In talking over the day’s events with Hintz, Woldt saidhe found that nearly all the suspects that day had one thingin common: Theyfailed to completetheir high schooleducation in atraditional setting.Hintz said the visitunderscored for himthe relationshipbetween education, orlack thereof, andcontact with thecriminal justice system.

Other legislators who have participated in the Ride-Along Program since the beginning of the legislative sessioninclude: Rep. Anthony J. Staskunas, D-West Allis;Rep. Joan Ballweg, R-Markesan; Rep. Fred Kessler, D-Milwaukee; Rep.Sondy Pope-Roberts,D-Middleton; andRep. Jeff Smith, D-Eau Claire.

The program wasstarted in 1993 as away to improveunderstanding andcommunicationbetween the judiciaryand the Legislature.

“I think everylegislator should berequired to do it,”Hintz said. “I hope todo it with otherjudges. I think I onlyhad a snapshot ofwhat happens.” &

Judge Ramona A. Gonzalez

'�()()*�+-,/.103254�*�6�78*�9;:=<�*>,�()?>@�A�B�CD@�*�9;. *�E/F (�. 6�CDB�9G()A�HI9JF K�*L6/. B�M�E�N�OLF CD@QPR<�K�ES*�(

Rep. Mike Huebsch

Judge Scott C. Woldt Rep. Gordon Hintz

Judge Richard J. Sankovitz, Milwaukee County CircuitCourt, is working to develop a collection of judges’

investiture speeches. The speeches will be placed in anarchive that will be available on the court system’s Intranetand through the Court Information Office.

Judges are also asked to submit samples of the programsand invitations that they developed for investitures; these,too, will be available to the judiciary on the Intranet.

The archive may be useful to judges planninginvestitures, and will be an important historic record. &Transcripts donated to this project may be e-mailed or mailedto Court Information Officer Amanda K. Todd atAmanda.todd@wicourts.gov or Director of State CourtsOffice, PO Box 1688, Madison, Wis. 53701-1688, or mailed toJudge Richard J. Sankovitz at Milwaukee County Courthouse,901 N. 9th St., Milwaukee, Wis. 53233-1425.

TVU�WXWSY[Z]\_^a`)b�c�d�ef^geih5\Rc�dVj8c5c5kml8c5d

Rep. Joan Ballweg Rep. Fred Kessler

Rep. Sondy Pope-Roberts

Rep. Anthony J. Staskunas

npo�q�r�s�tu8v�v�w

x%y

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

The Wisconsin Supreme Court met this spring withmembers of four legislative committees to share ideas

and discuss topics related to crime and the courts. Discussion was lively during the meetings, which were

held in the Supreme Court Hearing Room – one each inApril and May. Topics were sometimes serious, but the toneof the meetings was casual and friendly.

“We were glad to have the opportunity to share how thecourt system operates and discuss our goal of improving thejustice system for the people of Wisconsin,” said ChiefJustice Shirley S. Abrahamson.

In April, the justices met jointly with the AssemblyCommittee on Corrections and the Courts, headed by Rep. Garey Bies, R-Sister Bay, and the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Corrections, headed by Sen.Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee.

Among the many topics discussed at that meeting:interpreters, public defender representation, access to justicefor low-income individuals, drug and alcohol treatment

programs, disproportionate minority contact, the statebudget, and the Judicial Council.

In May, justices met with the Assembly Committee onJudiciary and Ethics, headed by Rep. Mark Gundrum, R-New Berlin, and the Assembly Committee on CriminalJustice, headed by Rep. Joel Kleefisch, R-Oconomowoc.

At that meeting, legislators and justices addressed someof the same issues and others: the proper roles of thebranches of government, court information, the need forjudges, the use of reserve judges, offender re-entry, thelegislative process, judicial review, and court costs.

While discussion didn’t go too in-depth on any onetopic, the meetings were successful at building relationships,sharing information, and discussing the challenges that eachbranch faces, Abrahamson said.

Abrahamson started the informational meetings severalyears ago in an effort to encourage sharing informationabout the challenges facing the judicial system. z

{�|S}�~����-������|�~��D� ���/� �)�S|��)��� �������L� �D��� ���/� ��� ���D��~G����~��L��� ������~������/� ���

{��)�-}������ |������p��~����)�)����}�~����/� ���-���)�/� ��� ���L���S|�~��D�)�����D����~�� �/� �J� ���J� �����

In 1999, Minnesota District Court Judge Joanne M. Smithadmits she had a bias against what she referred to then as

“boutique courts.”Today, however, she finds herself

stumping for problem-solving courts– and Minnesota is recognized as aleader in implementing successfulinitiatives to reduce incarceration andimprove outcomes in criminal cases.

Smith joined Eau Claire CountyCircuit Court Judge Lisa K. Stark asa featured speaker at a LegislativeCouncil symposium on effectivecriminal justice strategies held at thestate Capitol in Madison in March.

Smith, who oversees a substanceabuse court in St. Paul, saidMinnesota’s experience withproblem-solving courts has made hera believer, and she presentednumbers to justify her change inattitude.

A 2006 cost-benefit analysis ofthe Ramsey County JuvenileSubstance Abuse Court (JSAC)showed graduates had the lowest costof any group, averaging $12,000 less than a comparisongroup over two years. Comparison group costs were 41percent higher per juvenile.

JSAC was started in 2001, two years after RamseyCounty officials began examining ways to more directlyaddress juvenile substance abuse. Since then, RamseyCounty initiated an adult substance abuse court, OWI court,mental health court and community court, which targets

“livability crimes, such as underage drinking.”Similar to the membership make up of Criminal Justice

Coordinating Councils (CJCC) in Wisconsin, the RamseyCounty group included keystakeholders from the offices of thecounty administrator, countyattorney, public defender, countycommissioner, sheriff, correctionsand health officials.

“The courts cannot do this alone.We need all the justice partnersworking with us,” Smith said.Wisconsin has 23 CJCCs, whichbring together a similar mix ofstakeholders at the county level,Stark told the group. She thenpresented some details, highlightingthe success of Eau Claire County’sdrug court, which is provingeffective at treating non-violentcriminals in need of alcohol andother drug abuse treatment.

During the first 18 months of thecourt’s existence, the average yearlycost for a drug court participant inEau Claire County is $6,135,

compared to the average yearly cost for prison of about$25,000, Stark said. The recidivism rate for Eau ClaireCounty’s drug court participants is 12 percent, compared tobetween 65 percent and 75 percent nationally for those drugand alcohol offenders who have not participated in atreatment court.

At least 16 Wisconsin counties have establishedproblem-solving courts. z

Judge Joanne M. Smith, of the Minnesotadistrict court in St. Paul, shares information onMinnesota’s efforts to reduce incarceration.Smith spoke at a Legislative Council-sponsoredsymposium in Madison.

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

���������� ¡�¢�¢�£

¤%¥

municipal judge, Hinkfuss alsohas been a member of theGreen Bay City Council andthe Brown County Board. Hinkfuss is married with threechildren.

Sazama wins re-election in Chippewa

Judge Thomas J. Sazama,on the bench in ChippewaCounty since 1995, prevailedover Atty. Julie A. Anderl ofAnderl Law Office, LLC, by atwo-to-one margin. Anotherchallenger, Atty. Sonia LeeAnderson, was defeated in theprimary.

White wins inColumbia County

Judge Alan J. White,appointed by Gov. Jim Doylelast July to succeed JudgeRichard L. Rehm, won about 75percent of the vote on April 3.Challenging White wasAssistant Columbia CountyDistrict Atty. Troy D. Cross.

La Crosse voters select three new judgesIn La Crosse County, voters selected a state

public defender and the county’s district attorney tosucceed the well-respected Michael Mulroy and John J.Perlich. Incumbent Judge Roger W. LeGrand lost in aclose race.

LeGrand, who had served as the county’s familycourt commissioner for 14 years when Gov. Jim Doyleappointed him in spring 2006 to succeed the retiringJudge Dennis Montabon, lost his seat by less than 500votes out of about 19,000 cast. The victor wasAssistant District Atty. Todd W. Bjerke, who has beena prosecutor since 1989. Bjerke is a 1984 graduate ofHamline University Law School.

In the race for Branch 2, Public Defender Elliott M.Levine beat Deputy DistrictAtty. Loralee Clark by amargin of 10,812 to 7,952.Eliminated in the primarywas Assistant State PublicDefender Christine Clair.Levine oversees publicdefenders in 10 counties andwas a founding member ofthe La Crosse County DrugCourt. He is also a memberof the Alternatives toIncarceration Subcommittee of the Supreme Court Planning and Policy Advisory Committee (PPAC), and ispresident of the Wisconsin Association of Treatment Court Professionals. He is a 1990 graduate of the UWLaw School.

Succeeding Perlich, who retired in November 2006 after

¦�§g¨5©5ªi«g¬]­�®continued from front page

In a brief ceremony at the state Capitol, the seven justicesgathered around the attorney tables in the Supreme Court

Hearing Room as Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson drewthe names of four lucky winners from a hat.

The winners – four Court of Appeals judges – will serveon a candidate committee that will submit names for thestate’s new Government Accountability Board (GAB). TheGAB will replace the State Elections Board and the StateEthics Board and will be responsible for state laws related toelections, campaign finance, ethics, and lobbying.

The chosen four – one each from the state’s four Courtof Appeals’ districts – are:

District I (headquartered in Milwaukee): Judge Patricia S. CurleyDistrict II (headquartered in Waukesha): Judge Neal P. NettesheimDistrict III (headquartered in Wausau):Judge Gregory A. PetersonDistrict IV (headquartered in Madison): Judge Margaret J. Vergeront

¯)¬�°5±_²V¬]°�±�ª_¬5³_´Qµ5µ�¨5¶�§I®3·%°8¸5¹5¨�®º®�¨]±�»�¨�¬]­�¼]´¾½¿©�¶]­�¸�«I¸�¶Àª�¨ÂÁ�¬5¶�±Ã¸

Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson selects Court ofAppeals judges for service on the committee that will selectGovernment Accountability Board candidates for theGovernor’s consideration.

see Elections on page 27

Judge-elect Timothy Hinkfuss

Judge Thomas J. Sazama

Judge Alan J. White

Photo credit: Brent Nicastro

Judge-elect Elliott M. Levine

Judge Scott L. Horne

Judge-elect Todd W. Bjerke

ÄpÅ�Æ�Ç�È�ÉÊ8Ë�Ë�Ì

Í%Î

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Ï�Ð�Ñ�Ò�Ó�Ô�Õ�Ö�×DØ�ÕLÏ8ÙmÚpÕSÛ/Ü�Ý ×DÞ�Øß�à Ð�Ö�× àSá�âmã�ã Ó�ÕVÜ ä)å�æ�Ý ä)×DÖçÝ Þ�×�èé

Judge Martha J. Bablitch, who served on the WisconsinCourt of Appeals from its creation in 1978 until herresignation in 1985, and who made history as the firstwoman to serve on the Court of Appeals, died April 4 oflung cancer. She was 62.

Bablitch was born in Lawrence, Kansas, and grewup in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where her mother was anattorney and her father was an English professor. Shewas a graduate of Lawrence University and the UWLaw School. Before her election to the Court ofAppeals she practiced law with the Stevens Pointfirm of Bablitch & Bablitch. She was also married atone time to former Justice William A. Bablitch.

An obituary said this: “Martha waged her battlewith lung cancer the way she lived her life; she nevergave an inch. She wielded her courage and strengthof character with grace and dignity, humor and

passion and often downright brilliance. To those who knewher and whose lives Martha’s life informed, she was beyonddescription. No words can convey the depth and generosityof her nature….”

Bablitch is survived by her sister, Veronica “Ronnie”Virtue, who lives in Minneapolis.Ï�Ð�Ñ�Ò�ÓLê/Ø à�ë Õ�äºì8Ù�íîÕ/Ý ÖGÞ�Ø/Ý�Ü Ñï Ù�ð�Ù ß�à Ð�Ö�× àSá�âmã�ã ÓSÕ/Ü ä)åð�Ó�ñ�Ó�ò�×DØ ß Ý ÖGÞ�Ð/Ý ×Dóô Ý ä)Þ à ò�ä�Ý òLð�Ð ã Ö�Ó ë Ó ß�à Ð�Ö�×

Judge Thomas E. Fairchild, who served on theWisconsin Supreme Court from 1956-66 and on the U.S.Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 1966-81, diedMonday, February 12. He was 94.

Prior to joining the Supreme Court, Fairchild served asstate attorney general and as a U.S. attorney, and ran twicefor U.S. Senate - once against Sen. Alexander Wiley and

once against Sen. Joseph McCarthy. Fairchild’s state service ended in 1966, when he

left the Wisconsin Supreme Court to accept anappointment from President Lyndon Johnson to theU.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit,located in Chicago. He presided there until hisretirement in 1981. In 1988, underscoring theenormous respect that Fairchild commanded withinthe legal community, the UW Law School named alecture series for him.

When journalists sought comment on Fairchild’slegacy, they turned to Chief Justice Shirley S.Abrahamson, who predicted that Fairchild would be

remembered as a man who served with “great distinction,not only as a jurist but as a human being.”

Abrahamson told the Wisconsin State Journal thatFairchild had a great sense of humor, and kept a stock oflimericks in a box. “When I started on the court and had tostart making a lot of speeches, I thought I could borrowsome of his limericks. But I found they were not suitable for

public consumption,” she recalled.Former Chief Justice Nathan S. Heffernan, who sadly

passed away just two months after Fairchild, alsocommented upon his old friend’s legacy. Heffernan calledFairchild “One of the greatest judges I’ve ever known.”

On April 11, the Wisconsin Supreme Court acceptedFairchild’s portrait for hanging in the Capitol, followingtradition. Many members of Fairchild’s family, andnumerous former law clerks were present.

Fairchild’s wife of 68 years, Eleanor Dahl Fairchild,passed away in 2005. He is survived by his sons, Tim ofMadison and Andy of Enterprise, Ore.; his daughters, SusanChase of Andover, N.H., and Jennifer Lord of CrippleCreek, Colo.; his eight grandchildren; and his four great-grandchildren.

ß Ø/Ý Ó á Ï�Ð�ä)×JÝ ÞSÓöõ/Õ�×DØ�Õ�òLð�Ù�÷/Ó áRá Ó�Ö�ò�ÕSòô Ý ä)Þ à ò�ä�Ý òLð�Ð ã Ö�Ó ë Ó ß�à Ð�Öø×Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan

S. Heffernan, who served on the Court from 1964-95, diedFriday, April 13 in Madison. He was 86.

Heffernan’s 31 years on the Court made him one of thethree longest-serving justices in state history. Heffernan’swork on the bench distinguished him as a top scholar witheclectic opinions and a good sense of humor. He was wellknown for his commitment to civil liberties and women’srights and is recognized for his involvement in the courtreorganization of 1978, whichcreated the Wisconsin Court ofAppeals.

Heffernan became a justice atthe age of 43, when he wasappointed to the Court by Gov.John W. Reynolds. Before that, heserved two years as U.S. Attorneyfor the Western District ofWisconsin – a position to whichhe was appointed to by PresidentJohn F. Kennedy. From 1959-62,Heffernan served as deputyattorney general for Wisconsin; prior to that he worked inSheboygan, where he began his career in the law.

Heffernan’s passions were, in addition to the law,breeding Labrador Retrievers and fishing on the BruleRiver. His beloved dogs, Lex Loci and Stare Decisis,survive him.

In recent years, Heffernan had devoted himself to caringfor his wife, Dorothy, whose health had declined. Shesurvives him, as do his children, Kate Thomas of Wales,Great Britain; Michael of Madison; and Tom of Port Wing.Also surviving him are his five grandchildren.

ß Ø/Ý Ó á Ï�Ð�Ñ�ÒSÓöÚ�Ð�Ö�× à ò â Ù�ð�Þ à ×�×ß�à Ð�Ö�× à�á]â�ãSã Ó�Õ/Ü ä)åmæ�Ý ä)×DÖJÝ Þ�×;èùèJudge Burton A. Scott, who served on the Wisconsin

Court of Appeals (District II) for 11 years and on the trial

see Obituaries on page 15

Judge Martha J. Bablitch

OBITUARIES

Judge Thomas E. Fairchild

Chief Justice Nathan S. Heffernan

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

ú�û�ü�ý�þ�ÿ�������

���

OBITUARIES continued from page 14

bench in Kenosha County for eight years before that, diedApril 2 at home. He was 72.

In an interview with the Kenosha News, Reserve JudgeMichael S. Fischer recalled his friend and mentor. “He was agood friend,” Fisher said. “And he was a wonderful teacher.I think he enjoyed teaching more than he enjoyed actually

sitting up on the bench….He helped me quite a bit.”

The newspaper alsointerviewed Atty. FredZievers, who recalledScott’s enthusiasm fornew ideas. For a while,Zievers said, Scott wantedto hold night court atdifferent locations aroundthe county. “That didn’tthrill too many people,”he recalled.

When Scott moved tothe Court of Appeals, hebrought his love ofteaching and learning

along with him. During his tenure there, he served six yearsas chief judge, from 1983-89, and well known for hisadministrative skills. In 1988, he was elected chair of theNational Council of Chief Judges of the Courts of Appealsof the United States.

Shortly after his retirement, he accepted a post asassociate dean of the National Judicial College in Reno,Nev., where he served until 1994. After that, he and his wifetraveled the country before settling in Alabama, where Scottbecame a Habitat for Humanity volunteer. The Scottsreturned to Wisconsin in 2001.

Surviving Scott are his wife of 50 years, Evelyn C.Magnuson Scott; a daughter, Kifflie, and a son, David.

���� ����� ������������������� � !"�#��� � $%� �&'��)(+*�#,.-/(0� 12���� ,(3*�14,.56(3*�#,.-7(3*�14,(3*�14,8*9;:=<<� ��� >"?3@3� >",.1A� �,CB

Judge Michael T. Sullivan, who became a judge at theage of 28 and served in both the Milwaukee County andCircuit Courts and in the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, died

in late March. Sullivan was a judge in

Milwaukee County for 41years. During his 29 years onthe trial court in Milwaukee, heserved in every division and aschief judge, a position he heldfor five years.

Sullivan championed civilrights and was an earlysupporter of victim/witnessprograms and domestic

violence programs. He also was a role model and an

advocate for the removal of barriers – physical andotherwise – to people with disabilities. Striken with polio atage 6, Sullivan spent much of his life using arm braces anda wheelchair.

After his service on the trial bench, Sullivan became aCourt of Appeals judge. He served there for 12 years,establishing a reputation for legal scholarship and hard work(he was known to rise at 4 a.m. and be to work by 6), untilhe was defeated in the 1996 election.

Throughout his life, according to his obituary, Sullivanenjoyed checkers, Sheepshead, swimming, fishing, andsnowmobiling. Later in life, he successfully played the stockmarket.

He was born in Milwaukee in 1924 and graduated withB.A. and J.D. degrees from Marquette Law School. Heearned an LL.M. degree in taxation from John Marshall LawSchool in 1972.

Sullivan’s wife, Jeanne, preceded him in death. He issurvived by his son, Michael T. Sullivan Jr., and his brotherand two sisters.

�����ED'1A� �F����G/��H�D'� �F(I� ��� 12�)(+*�#,.-/(0� 12���� ,;(+*� 14,

Judge Eric J. Wahl, who was elected to the bench in EauClaire County in 1993 and reelected in 1999 and 2005, diedsuddenly on a Saturday morningin early April from an aneurysm.He was 64.

Wahl was known for his senseof humor, his delight instorytelling, and his ability toconnect with the people whoentered his courtroom.

Newspaper accounts of hislife spoke to the simple pleasureshe enjoyed: cooking, reading,listening to music, and spendingtime with family.

Wahl’s career reflected his colorful personality, and hislong and varied work in law-related fields guided andenriched his work as a judge. As a new graduate of the UWLaw School in 1967, the Eau Claire native signed on withthe FBI, where he served as a special agent for four years.He then returned to school, earning an LL.M. from GeorgeWashington University in Washington D.C. After working asan assistant U.S. attorney, Wahl spent 17 years in privatepractice, during which time he also served as president ofthe Eau Claire City Council. He was elected to the bench in1993.

Since Wahl’s death, Reserve Judge Thomas Barland hasbeen helping to handle the caseload. Gov. Jim Doyle isexpected to appoint a successor.

Wahl is survived by his wife, Bette, and three grownchildren, Matthew of Louisville, Tenn.; Carter of San Diego;and Kathryn of Eau Claire. J

Judge Eric J. Wahl

Judge Burton Scott in his boat,Resolute. Scott didn’t care forgolf, but loved to fish.

Photo credit: Kenosha News

Judge Michael T. Sullivan

KML�NPO�Q�RS'T�T�U

V�W

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

X�Y.Z�Y.[\�] ^A_ `ZHa"b�cd"Ye_ f[Eg�h^icjkclm Z�Y.[by Erin Slattengren, policy analyst, Office of Court Operations

In July 2005, the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau ofJustice Assistance sponsored a national gathering in

Green Bay to foster tribal-federal-state court relations. Thisconference, titled, Walking on Common Ground: Pathwaysto Equal Justice served as the catalyst for Wisconsin toreconvene its State-Tribal Justice Forum. This is an updateon the Forum’s work.

The newly re-established committee consists of fivecircuit court judges, five tribal judges, one district courtadministrator, one representative from the State Bar Indian

Law Chapter, and onerepresentative from theLegislative Council’s State-Tribal Relations Committee.The director of state courts is anex-officio member, and a policyanalyst from the Director’sOffice is designated committeestaff. The committee’s generalcharge is to promote and sustaincommunication, education andcooperation among tribal and

state court systems and to promote initiatives outlined in thefinal report of the Walking on Common Ground conference.The Honorable James B. Mohr, Lac Courte Oreilles TribalCourt Judge and former state court Chief Judge wasappointed by Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson to chairthis committee.

The State-Tribal Justice Forum met for the first time inMay of 2006. Members who had been involved in theprevious state-tribal committee provided background to newmembers. The committee discussed past initiatives anddecided to take a new approach in facilitating andsupporting efforts statewide in fostering cooperation amongstate and tribal systems.

Following the first meeting, all members agreed to goback to their local jurisdictions and meet with theirrespective state or tribal counterpart and discuss projects andpriorities that the Forum should focus its attention on for thenext year.

The Forum has met four times in the last year anddiscussed the feedback they received from their meetingsand worked to prioritize the initiatives on which to focus.From these meetings and also from the input received at theWalking on Common Ground Conference, the State-TribalJustice Forum is focusing efforts on the following areas:

1. Work to institutionalize meetings and ongoingcommunication between state-court and tribal-courtcounterparts. This could include quarterly meetings anda “ride-along” once per year.

2. Develop a process or model protocol of communicatingcourt orders among court systems. The Forum has met

with the Wisconsin Tribal Judges Association (WTJA)and offered advice and support around development ofautomated case management systems within tribalcourts. This system would allow for improvedcommunication of orders among tribes and potentiallywith the state court system. The Forum also sponsored atraining by CCAP for the WTJA on the benefits ofautomated case management and how to use WCCA.This training will be provided again in the near futurefor tribal clerks.

3. Study and make recommendations regarding issues ofcriminal jurisdiction and transfer of jurisdiction. TheForum is currently developing a petition to theWisconsin Supreme Court on a process for thediscretionary transfer of jurisdiction in concurrentjurisdiction cases. Two judicial administrative districts inWisconsin (9 and 10) have already developed detaileddistrict protocols for handling concurrent jurisdictioncases. This rule would provide a statewide legalmechanism for discretionary transfer. The Forum iscurrently in the process of seeking comment fromvarious interested groups, such as the Committee ofChief Judges.

4. Endorse and promote educational opportunities for stateand tribal courts. n

o _ d"fhpd�_ p)X�Y.Z�Y.[\ ]M^e_ `Z�a�g�h ^qcjjr[ jr`[^qd"sH_ lt

Judge Richard L. Ackley, Bad River Chippewa Judge John P. Anderson, Bayfield County James Botsford, Wisconsin Judicare, Inc.Judge Michael J. Gableman, Burnett CountyJudge James R. Habeck, Shawano CountyJudge Gerald W. Laabs, Jackson CountyJerry Lang, District 4 court administratorJudge Chris McGeshick, Sokaogon

Chippewa CommunityJudge Robert Miller Jr., Stockbridge-Munsee

Tribal CourtJudge James B. Mohr, Lac Courte

Oreilles (chair)Judge Neal A. Nielsen III, Vilas CountyRep. Gary Sherman, D-Port WingJudge Kim Vele, Stockbridge-Munsee

Tribal CourtA. John Voelker, director of state courts

Staff: Erin Slattengren, Office of CourtOperations

Judge James B. Mohr

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

u�v�wPx�y�z{�|�|�}

~��

RETIREMENTS��� ���A� ���F�3���4�8��;�=�� ���� ��������� � ���"�2��A� �2�

When a veteran judge retires, there is an attendant loss ofinstitutional memory and experience. With Chief JudgeThomas Cane’s departure, the judiciary will also lose aprolific writer, an energetic teacher, a seasonedadministrator, and a judge with a national reputation.

One of the strongest testaments to Cane’s abilities andindependence is his appointment history. Though it may be

hard to imagine today, Canewas appointed by two governorsof different political stripes.Gov. Patrick J. Lucey (aDemocrat) appointed him to thecircuit court bench inOutagamie County; Gov. Lee S.Dreyfus (a Republican) elevatedhim to the Court of Appealsnine years later.

“I have been very fortunateto serve as a judge for over half

of my life,” Cane said, “and I wouldn’t trade this experiencefor anything.”

Some of the facets of the experience that he will missmost have nothing to do with case deciding – although hesaid he has enjoyed working as a member of a collegialcourt. Cane has found great satisfaction in service on thefaculty at the Wisconsin Judicial College, service on theWisconsin Judicial Commission, and service on the NationalCouncil of Chief Judges, where he was a member of theEducation Committee and the Executive Board.

“One thing I did learn from my national experience wasto appreciate what a wonderful judicial system we have inWisconsin,” Cane said. “Other than pay, I would say ourjudiciary is second to none and our judicial education systemis probably one of the best, if not the best in the nation.”

With 26 years of service on the Court of Appeals, Cane isthe third-longest-serving judge in the court’s brief history(two sitting judges, Richard S. Brown, District II, andCharles P. Dykman, District IV, have served for 29 years).Judge Edward R. Brunner, Barron County Circuit Court, waselected without opposition to succeed him.

Cane began his law career in the Air Force, where heserved as a Captain in the Office of the Judge AdvocateGeneral on Okinawa from 1964-67. Following that, heworked in private practice in Kaukauna for a short time priorto joining the Outagamie County District Attorney’s Office.In 1972, he was appointed to the circuit court bench inAppleton, where he served until his 1981 appointment to theWisconsin Court of Appeals. He has been elected to the seatfour times and, for the last nine years, has served as thecourt’s chief judge, a position that has given him a uniqueperspective on the issues facing the statewide intermediateappellate court.

“One of the concerns I have for all judges is the veryheavy workload, and the possibility of burnout,” he said.“Taking our full vacation at one time is impossible because

of the workload. And keeping up with changes in the law isanother big issue; you just have to stay current in so manyareas of the law, and that can be a challenge.”

In retirement, Cane hopes to serve as a reserve judge inthe trial courts, which provide a measure of humaninteraction that he has missed on the Court of Appeals. “Thetrial bench is my first love,” he said. “There you get to meeta lot of people – community members from all parts of life,lawyers, litigants, jurors – and, though it can be at timesvery isolating, it’s also a very rewarding job.”

He also hopes to travel extensively with his wife, Jane,who retired last year from teaching English and history atWausau East High School. The couple plans to upgrade themotor home, pack up the three German Shorthairs (Cane’shunting companions), and travel through the southwest andalong the East Coast. “That’s something you can’t do as asitting judge, because you can’t get away for more than twoweeks at a time,” he said, adding that journeys to Ireland,Germany, Argentina, and Chile are also planned.

Finally, Cane hopes to spend more time with his fourgrown children, who include a University of Oklahomaprofessor, a Ford Motor Company executive in Michigan, aMilwaukee social worker, and a speech pathologist in theAppleton schools.

���2� � �)�+����.��� ��"��/����P� �2������� ��In his 19 years on the bench, Judge Richard J. Dietz has

enjoyed all of the things that make judging a great job: thepeople (some of them), the adoptions, collegial relationshipswith his colleagues, and the challenges presented by thornylegal issues. So it is no surprise that one of the highlights ofhis career has been serving on the Juvenile and CivilJury Instructions Committees, which has satisfied hisneed to do analytical work and has given him anopportunity to develop friendships with colleaguesfrom across the state.

“It’s a very academic experience, and one that youshare with some truly great judges,” he said. “I willtreasure that.”

Dietz was appointed in 1988 by then-Gov. TommyThompson. He had been working in private practiceand serving as De Pere city attorney, following a stintas city attorney for the City of Green Bay (a positionfor which he was selected when then-City AttorneyRichard Greenwood became a judge). He has been electedthree times without opposition and he loves the job, although– like many of his colleagues - he would prefer a caseloadheavier on civil litigation. He also has concerns about thelack of mentoring for young lawyers, and about theoccasionally sloppy filings he receives. But these, heacknowledges, are overall relatively minor issues. So whyleave?

“I’ve reached a point where I want to spend more timewith my family,” he said. “My daughter in New Hampshireis expecting twins, and I have six other grandchildren whoare growing up too fast.”

see Retirements on page 18

Chief Judge Thomas Cane

Judge Richard J. Dietz

�M�� P¡�¢�£¤'¥�¥�¦

§�¨

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Dietz and his wife, Candace, have three daughters and ason. “We had a family meeting and told them we weregoing to live three months with each of them,” he joked.“That didn’t go over too well. But we do look forward tomore time with the grandkids.”

His New Hampshire daughter is a published poet; adaughter in California is a massage therapist; and his twoWisconsin children - a daughter in Wauwatosa and a son inMilwaukee - are, respectively, a physical therapist with theVeterans Administration and an executive with Wells Fargo. In addition to visiting family, Dietz also plans to travel a lotmore in retirement. He and his wife, who teaches Spanish atthe high school and college level, hope to spend more timein Spain and to return to Ireland. Finally, as time permits, hehopes to serve as a reserve judge and do some mediationand arbitration work.

“I really have enjoyed these 19 years,” he said. “WhileI’m looking forward to a different life, I am going to miss it. But there’s a lot to be said for retiring while you still enjoy the job. You don’t want to leave as thecourthouse curmudgeon.”

©�ª«¬)­+®«°.±�²�³ ¬F¬ «³µ7¶ · ±¹¬ªº» ª º2¬¬º�¼ «)°P½¬E¾ ª¿

Judge Robert A. DeChambeau retired June 1 after a legalcareer spanning over 40 years, including 20 in Branch 1 ofDane County Circuit Court.

“I have mixed feelings about retiring, but it’s time,”DeChambeau told a reporter from The Capital Times. Prior to his 1987 election, DeChambeau spent the majorityof his career in the Dane County District Attorney’s Office,with the exception of a few years in private practiceimmediately following his graduation from the UW LawSchool.

DeChambeau told The Capital Times he has alwaysfound that sentencing defendants in drunken drivinghomicides is among the toughest parts of the job – a

sentiment with which many of his colleagues acrossthe state would concur.

“They are particularly difficult, because manytimes you’ve got someone who has made a veryserious error in judgment who is otherwise anormally law-abiding citizen, and you have very,very tragic results and a need for there to be somepunishment. Those are very difficult,” he said.

While he has seen his fair share of challengingcases, DeChambeau has also found his work to berewarding, especially when “you see people walk outof the courtroom giving me the impression they

know they’ve been listened to, and knowing why I made adecision and being able to accept that and move on withtheir life,” he told the newspaper.

In retirement, DeChambeau plans to serve as a reservejudge and to travel with his wife, Gretchen Hayward, whorecently retired from the Dane County District Attorney’sOffice. DeChambeau also told The Capital Times that he’sconsidering a building project in northern Wisconsin.

“…I’ve got it in my mind that maybe I will build a logcabin on land I own near Rhinelander,” he said.

À+Á Á®°.°;°.®)º2¬°A¼ ºq¬Â�Á° » ®«°A¼ «¬µ"½ªºA¼ «)½�¼ µ7µ"¬ «µ"¬)®Ã;½ Är®º

Just because Monroe County Circuit Court Judge StevenLuse Abbott is retiring doesn’t mean he’s cracked his lastjoke about being a judge. While he treats the work ofjudging with the seriousness it demands, he has found that civil litigants appreciate his occasional use of humor inthe courtroom.

In fact, during his retirement,Abbott said he’ll compile a bookof some of the more humorousevents he experienced during his12 years as a judge. Just don’texpect the language to be cleaned up.

Abbott said he’ll probablyinclude in his book the one aboutthe defendant who, as he wasescorted out of court by a bailiff,called the judge by an epithet andthen blamed it on the bailiff. He’llalso probably include the one about the dirtiest divorce case,the details of which will have to wait for the book.

Abbott has faced several major medical challenges inrecent years and is now a double amputee, which has notslowed him down and will not deter him for a moment fromserving as a reserve judge. But the rigorous schedule of anactive judge, though he hated to give it up, was taking itstoll. “I was in the hospital,” he said, “and things weren’tlooking too good, and I had to cancel a couple of trials.”

Abbott declined to seek re-election this year, and plans toremain in office until August 1, when Atty. Todd Zieglerwill succeed him (see separate story, page 26). Abbott wasfirst elected in 1995 and re-elected in 2001. Beforebecoming a judge, Abbott worked in private practice and asa court commissioner. His first run for judge was in 1992,when his now-colleague Michael J. McAlpine defeated himin the race for an open seat.

Abbott and his wife, Jean, have one son, Barry, wholives in Berlin, Wis.

Å «¬�¼ ³ª)­+®¯« °P±�²�¯ ³´¬)ª««®¯« » ¬µº2¬°A¼ º2¬ Är¬« °

Judge Robert E. Kinney, a longtime, well respectedjudge whose commitment to the State Bar Mock TrialProgram helped Rhinelander to win an unprecedentednumber of state and national competitions, retired from thebench effective May 18. Gov. Jim Doyle is expected toappoint a successor.

Kinney is one of the longest serving judges inWisconsin, having taken the bench 31 years ago at age 28.An appointee of Gov. Patrick J. Lucey, Kinney has sincebeen elected five times. Prior to becoming a judge, Kinneywas Oneida County district attorney.

RETIREMENTS continued from page 17

see Retirements on page 19

Judge Robert A. DeChambeau

Judge Steven Luse Abbott

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Æ�Ç�ÈPÉ�Ê�ËÌ�Í�Í�Î

Ï�Ð

RETIREMENTS continued from page 18

Reaction to Kinney’s retirement decision was reported inThe Daily News (Rhinelander), which quoted Sheriff JeffHoffman as saying, “Judge Kinney is highly respected

among fellow judges, lawyersand by the men and women ofour department. He has alwaysbeen fair, hardworking and veryknowledgeable of the law.”

Kinney’s judicial assistant,Mavis Winkler, has been withhim for 12 years. She alsogranted an interview with thenewspaper. “Working firsthandwith Judge Kinney, I see thefulfillment (he) receives in

being on the bench for 31 years,” Winkler said. “It willcertainly be difficult to find a replacement who is ashardworking as he is and so dedicated to his job, especiallywith the youth of this community.”

Kinney was unavailable for comment on his plans forretirement. He is married with three children.

ÑÓÒÔ.Õ ÖÕ ×ÙØ Ú)Û+ÜÒÝÔ.Þ/ß�Ø àá/âãÕä2ÚåæÚ�ç ç�ÔPÜÔPå%Ü)è�ÚÔPÚ ä2ÕÝ�é�Òà ÖÚá

Over the next three months, the Outagamie CountyCircuit Court will bid a fond farewell to two longtimejudges whose departure will mean a loss of 43 years ofcombined judicial experience.

The judges, Dennis C. Luebke and Joseph M. Troy, areleaving for new opportunities in the legal profession –opportunities that highlight the diverse work available in thelaw. Luebke has accepted an appointment as an internationaljudge for the United Nations Mission in Kosovo, while Troywill join the law firm of Habush, Habush & Rottier.

Luebke’s last day was in June; Troy’s will be in August.Gov. Jim Doyle is expected to appoint replacements for bothjudges; the successors will stand for election in April 2008.

Although Luebke and Troy will be missed for theirlongtime service on the bench, some of their most importantcontributions have been made outside of the courtroom.Both are known for their teaching skills, which they haveput to use in state and national forums, their leadership in

local efforts to find alternativesto incarceration and toinstitutionalize restorativejustice, and their service onstatewide committees andcommissions such as theState/Federal/Tribal CourtForum (Luebke) and the PublicTrust and Confidence SteeringCommittee (Troy). Troy alsoserved as the Eighth JudicialDistrict’s chief judge.

Luebke joined the bench by appointment in 1984, andhas been elected four times since. Prior to becoming ajudge, he worked for 11 years in private practice and for

three years as an assistant district attorney in Racine County.Troy joined the bench by election in 1987, and wasreelected three more times. Like Luebke, he comes from abackground in private practice. He said he looks forward toa return to his roots.

“The firm attracts good cases, they develop the law, andthey get to take sides on important issues,” Troy said. “Imiss not being the advocate and the representative ofindividual people and causes I believe in,” he told The PostCrescent. “I have valued and loved being a judge. But partof what a judge does is serve as a referee. And there’s a partof me that wants to get back in the game as a player.” Beyond that, Troy said he looks forward to “going to thehardware store on a day off and not having to answerquestions about why I’m not at work.”

But there is no doubt that he will miss his work onthe bench – and that the bench will miss him. JusticeDavid T. Prosser, a longtime Appleton resident whorepresented the area in the state Assembly for 18 years,told The Post Crescent that the high esteem in whichTroy’s colleagues hold him is evident in the stateCapitol. “If he were not first-rate, he would not havebeen selected chief judge of his district by the SupremeCourt – and then elected ‘chief of the chiefs’ by theother (chief) judges. I think that is symbolic of the high regard in which he is held by other judges,”Prosser said.

Troy said he would miss his colleagues and “theunexpected moments in the courtroom where you feel likeyou’re reaching someone at a moment when they’re ready to change.”

He was less certain that he would miss “being the punchline in Dennis Luebke’s pranks,” although he acknowledgedthat his other colleagues have been quite entertained by the‘trophies that Luebke has cooked up for him.

“Basically, anytime he can celebrate something I’ve doneto embarrass myself, he does so with a trophy,” Troyexplained. “For example, I have a driver here that he bore ahole through in honor of my whiffing more than once fromthe same tee. I also have a set of mounted mechanical teethwith the letter to the editor which described how much I likethe sound of my own voice.”

Luebke, although unavailable for comment in this story,indicated in his letter to the governor that he would beworking to rebuild the criminal court system in Kosovo, aneastern European nation that is bordered by Serbia,Macedonia, and Albania. “I … recognize that any successesI may achieve in this new endeavor will, in great measure,be the result of the guidance afforded me and the principlesof justice imparted to me by the Wisconsin court system.”

ê Ø ç å%ÕÒ ë'ÚÚì á/ÒÝÜâ�âiØ í�Ø Õ�ç"îïå%Úà à�Ø ÝÖð ç ÕÝÝÚä.ì�ä2ÚÔAØ ä2Úá

In her decade at the Milwaukee County Courthouse,Rosemarie Bruns deftly managed an array of secretarialtasks – typing, filing, customer service and so forth – and,

see Retirements on page 20

Judge Robert E. Kinney

Judge Dennis C. Luebke

Judge Joseph M. Troy

ñMò�óPô�õ�ö÷'ø�ø�ù

ú�û

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

RETIREMENTS continued from page 19

on Valentine’s Day, took on a very different set of duties asthe courthouse’s unofficial wedding planner.

“We had committees for arranging the flowers andbackground music; volunteers to bake cupcakes for thenewlyweds; and people in charge of printing keepsakewedding vows and notifying television stations,” she said.

While professional wedding planners might hope fornothing unexpected on the big day, Bruns relishes thesurprises that invariably accompany Valentine’s weddings at

the courthouse. Some couples arrive in classictuxedos and white gowns; others show up in bluejeans. Some bring entourages; others favor privacy.“We had one couple that wanted to be married in theback room and they didn’t want anyone from the TVcrew to see them,” Bruns said. “We didn’t know ifthey were hiding something or what, but we had topromise we would do the wedding in the back roomand they could leave through the back door.”

Though managing dozens of weddings could feellike a full-time job, Bruns – who retired January 12 –spent most of her time assisting Court Commissioner

Frank Liska. “Ninety percent of my job was working for Frank Liska,

who was the head judicial court commissioner,” Bruns said.“He retired the week before I did. When people asked why Iretired a week after him, I joked that I needed a week toclean up what he left.”

In addition to working for Liska, Bruns was also anassistant secretary to Clerk of Circuit Court John Barrett. Bruns’ first official day of retirement fell on a snowyMonday. “I got out of bed, listened to the weather and trafficreport, looked outside at the winter blizzard and said tomyself ‘now this is retirement’ and went back to bed,”Bruns said.

In retirement, Bruns hopes to continue writing a book ofher memoirs, which will include a chapter on the Valentine’sDay weddings. She also plans to take trips and spend timewith her son and daughter, as well as her grandchildren andgreat-grandchild.

üþýFÿ������ ÿ������ý������ ������ ����� �� �ÿ����ý������ÿ

Following 28 ½ years as Milwaukee County’sadministrative court commissioner, Frank Liska retiredJanuary 2, finally leaving what he jokingly called the three-block area where he has lived in his entire life.

“I was putting my last box of papers into the back of mycar and I looked up and saw the courthouse where I spentthe bulk of my professional life, to my left was thecommunity corrections facility, formerly St. Anthony’sHospital where I was born, and over my right shoulder therewas Marquette, where I attended law school,” he said. “Itwas like I had been running in place.”

Before his appointment in 1978, Liska spent seven yearsin private practice working on a variety of cases untildeciding it was time to try something different. “You know,when you’re young, you’re enthusiastic to try it all. I was

looking to go to the next thing, so when this job becameavailable, I interviewed and I was lucky enough given thecompetition to make the appointment. In those days therewere only five court commissioners, and I was one ofthem,” he said.

Nearly 30 years later, Liska decided it was time to retire,but still plans to stay involved with the legal profession.“I’d like to connect with some of the people that I workedwith over the years to act of counsel, do research, andmaybe handle some cases ...”

In addition, he is deciding how to use his newly acquiredspare time. “I have some trips planned and my hobby,hunting, has been something I’ve been doing a lot of thiswinter.” Liska also plans to spend time with his family. As itturns out, he said, “I’m as busy as can be.”

� �ý������ � !�!�"#� �ý�$% &� ý'�(��$��ÿ��)�+*�"��ÿ,�After 12 years as chief deputy in the Milwaukee County

Clerk of Circuit Courts Office and 13 years prior to that asclerk of circuit court for Washington County, Jon Sanfilippowas recently appointed clerk of the United States Court forthe Eastern District of Wisconsin.

Sanfilippo started his new position at the end of January,replacing Sofron Nedilsky who retired after 25 years. Whilehis duties as a clerk at the federal level are fairly similar tothose he carried out on the state level, he has noticed thereare more general responsibilities.“For example, the relationship ofthe courts and clerk of courtsoffice to the building,” he said. “Ifind myself involved withbuilding issues and the physicalplant. We have more input andcontrol than in state court.”

Although he is growingaccustomed to working in thefederal court, Sanfilippoacknowledges that he misses thepeople he worked with in Milwaukee County. “I still havecontact, but it’s a different kind of thing,” he said.

What he decidedly does not miss is the lack of budgetcontrol. “The thing I’m finding that I’m really excited aboutin federal court is that the federal court has a decentralizedbudget system that means we have a lot more control overhow we spend the money that is allotted,” he said.

-���!)� ý�./"%�ý��0&13ü(-�ÿ����2� ÿ��� When Corine Bien retired on May 16, Pepin County

Circuit Court lost more than 37 years of experience and fourcourt officials rolled into one.

Bien served as Pepin County’s register in probate,probate registrar, juvenile court clerk and judicial assistant.

She began work at the courthouse in 1969 at age 28 asdeputy to then-Register in Probate Thelma Pfeiffer. Biensaid she never expected to matching Pfeiffer’s 41 years ofservice, but she doesn’t regret getting close.

“It seems like you learn something new just about every

Rosemarie Bruns

Jon Sanfilippo

see Retirements on page 27

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

3�4�576 8�9:�;�;�<

=?>

@�A B C%D�EGF�HIE7D%J'K�F�D�L%M�F�L�M

Two longtime, highly regarded court employees areleaving the state court system (and the state) this spring

to embark upon new careers with the federal government.District Court Administrator Scott Johnson has accepted aposition with the federal district court in Des Moines, Iowa,while Court ReporterEd Johnson (norelation) will take upwith the U.S. House ofRepresentatives.

Scott is a lieutenantcolonel in the AirNational Guard, andhas served bothDistrict Six(headquartered inStevens Point) andDistrict 9(headquartered inWausau) during hiseight years with theWisconsin courtsystem.

“I will miss mycurrent and past chiefjudges, Dorothy Bainand Jim Evenson, andthe DCAs, and themany talented andhard-working staff I’vehad the pleasure to know over the years,” Scott said. Headded that he has been fortunate to work on a number ofstatewide committees that have tackled major issuesaffecting the delivery of justice in Wisconsin - issues suchas making the record, developing effective justice strategies(including alternatives to incarceration), languageinterpretation, caseload management, and improvingservices to pro se litigants.

Scott will become chief deputy clerk for the U.S. DistrictCourt that serves southern Iowa. In that capacity, he willwork closely with the clerk – a good friend and formerclassmate at the Institute for Court Management – tomanage a large, complex court system. “I am a person whoalways looks for new challenges,” he said, “and this is aposition that will offer many opportunities. It will be anhonor to work in the federal courts, just as it has been anhonor to work in the state courts.”

Scott’s last day in his Wausau office was May 4. Hebegan work in Iowa on May 17.

The other Johnson, Court Reporter Ed, is leavingWisconsin after 26 years of working as an official courtreporter. He will step down from his Ozaukee County postto work as an official reporter for the U.S. House ofRepresentatives.

Ed and his wife Katie, who live in Port Washington, willmove to Silver Spring, Maryland as Ed prepares for his newcareer. His goal is to work on the House floor, but he’ll start

with a training program that includes reporting forcommittee meetings, depositions, and other specialproceedings.

Ed worked six years as an official reporter in Marinettebefore heading to Ozaukee County, where he’s worked for

20 years.Ed said he will

continue to dabble instand-up comedy as he hasdone over the years. Hehopes to continueperforming beforegatherings of the NationalCourt ReportersAssociation, for which hehas served as legislativeadvisor. He’s also a pastpresident of the WisconsinCourt ReportersAssociation.

Some of his self-deprecating humor is betterappreciated by courtreporters than generalaudiences, Edacknowledged. Forexample, the running jokeamong a few of hiscolleagues is that he hasonly worked the equivalent

of 13 years as a court reporter because he’s missed everyother word.

District Court Administrator Mike Neimon, who, like allcourt administrators, has struggled in recent years with theshortage of certified court reporters, was among those whohad to dig deep to find humor in Ed’s announcement. “We(District 3 and the state) are the big losers in this deal onmany different levels,” Neimon wrote. “Ed is of the highestcaliber both personally and professionally.” N

In February, Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson accepted, on behalf ofthe Supreme Court, a Wisconsin flag presented by (from left) Col. TedMetzgar, Col. Michael Hinman, and Lt. Col. Scott Johnson. The flag,now on display at the Court, was presented in thanks for the Court’ssupport of Johnson’s active-duty military service.

Court Reporter Ed Johnson, who is leavingWisconsin for the intrigue of Washington, D.C.,where he expects to put his stand-up-comedytalents to good use, is shown accepting theDistinguished Service Award of the WisconsinCourt Reporters Association in 2003.

OQP�R7S T�UVXW�W�Y

Z?Z

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

PEOPLEWhen Rep. Joel Kleefisch, R-Oconomowoc, introduced

legislation that would require bright green license plates forconvicted sex offenders, he got people talking. In a frontpage story, The Capital Times quoted Kleefisch as saying

that he proposed the color greenbecause children already equateit with ‘Mr. Yuk,’ a symboldeveloped for use on poisons.The article noted that Ohioissues bright yellow plates torepeat drunk drivers. No word atpress time on the bill’s chancesof becoming law.

Wisconsin’s early years weremarked by numerous tugs-of-war waged between

municipalities that sought to be designated as county seats.The battle waged in Juneau County – a battle sparked by theneed to build a courthouse – was recently recounted bycounty historian Rose Clark in the Juneau County StarTimes. The contenders were Mauston and New Lisbon. Thepeople of Mauston hatched a two-part plan: first, create anew county from land that had been part of Adams County;second, win designation as the new county’s seat. Maustonwas brilliantly successful in the first endeavor, but not somuch in the second. After working diligently to establishJuneau County, Mauston found itself bested by New Lisbonas county seat. Furious, Mauston brought its case to theWisconsin Supreme Court, which was sitting in Janesville inthe summer of 1860. The key to Mauston’s case waselection clerk C.N. Holden, who was expected to testifythat New Lisbon officials had stuffed the ballot box. In anattempt to prevent Holden’s testimony, New Lisbonobtained a warrant for his arrest. A Mauston lawyer whomthe account does not name prevented the New Lisbonauthorities from serving Holden by moving him around aseries of houses in Janesville. Holden ultimately gave

damaging testimonyagainst New Lisbon butsubsequently recanted –supposedly for fear ofbeing lynched. The Courtin 1864 held thatMauston was the rightfulcounty seat. The county’scourthouse was built inMauston in 1875 at acost of $10,000.

As numerous mediaoutlets reported,hundreds of hardy souls

shed perfectly good parkas this winter and ran into LakeMichigan’s icy waters. Judge Charles Kahn, MilwaukeeCounty Circuit Court, was among those taking the PolarBear Plunge.

Media across Wisconsin reported on a poll of 500 likelyvoters in the Supreme Court race. The poll, conducted bythe Federalist Society, asked respondents to name any oneof the current justices or any one of the candidates. Seventy-six percent could not name anyone. Nine percent namedChief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson, but no other justicewas named by more than two percent. Other questionsrevealed that most (78 percent) do not know that there areseven justices on the state’s court of last resort.

“Headingfrom classes ona local collegecampus to hisjob inside abrewery, CoreyStern has tomake one stop.He has to go tojail.” So begana feature storyin the February8 edition of theMilwaukeeJournalSentinel on LaCrosse JusticeSanctions, a dayreporting centerthat has replaced La Crosse County’s Huber Center, whichclosed in January 2006. Most Justice Sanctions ‘clients’ arerequired to appear frequently – sometimes daily – andsubmit to various alcohol and drug tests. An offender whomisses an appointment is subject to immediate incarceration.Coordinator Jane Klekamp told the newspaper that sherevokes 20 or fewer clients per month out of the 200 in theprogram. Klekamp said that the center’s biggest advantage –other than cost savings – is its ability to focus onrehabilitation. The staff includes counselors who work withthe offenders on a variety of issues.

Among the thousands in Madison for the UWcommencement ceremonies was U.S. Supreme Court JusticeAntonin Scalia, who, with his wife, watched his son receivea Ph.D. in English. While in town, Scalia also did a favorfor his son's advisor: he teamed up with Chief JusticeShirley S. Abrahamson to perform the professor’swedding ceremony in the Capitol. When Scalia realizedthat he had forgotten his robe, he called the chief justice tosee about borrowing one. Justice Louis B. Butler Jr.’s robefit perfectly.

“Community service hours need tracking” headlined aneditorial in the March 14 edition of the Green Bay PressGazette. The newspaper’s editorial board, following ameeting with Corrections Secretary Matt Frank, called for

Rep. Joel Kleefisch

see People on page 23

Justice Sanctions Program CoordinatorJane Klekamp participates in a meetingwith Judge Dale T. Pasell and othermembers of the La Crosse County DrugCourt. Klekamp was lauded in the May 21edition of the La Crosse Tribune for hertireless work to build effective justicestrategies in La Crosse.

Photo credit: La Crosse Tribune

Judge Charles Kahn reacts to anunusually trying week in Milwaukee’sCivil Division.

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

[�\�]7^ _�`a�b�b�c

d?e

a statewide, searchable database of community servicesentences that would track completion of court-orderedcommunity service. “[L]et’s find an easy-to-use means ofletting the public check up on our defendants’ handy work,”the editorial proposed. “Are they cleaning up ditches? Arethey volunteering time for nonprofits? [Or] are they gettingoff easy?”

“Offender monitoring could be delayed,” an article in theMarch 14 edition of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,discussed the challenges that Waukesha County isexperiencing as it works to move about 50 work-releaseinmates into a new day-reporting program that was proposedby the county’s Criminal Justice Collaborating Council andapproved by the Waukesha County Board. Law enforcementhad hoped that the move would permit the transfer ofofficers over to the jail, which is short staffed, but a recentsurge in the number or inmates on work-release will makethat more difficult. Officials still hoped to begin dayreporting in April.

Justice Louis B. Butler Jr. is in demand as a speakerduring commencement season; first, Lawrence Universitywill recognize his accomplishments by conferring anhonorary degree during its spring graduation ceremony.Butler is an alumnus of Lawrence, where he earned hisbachelor’s degree in 1973, and also was keynote speaker forthis year’s Martin Luther King Jr. celebration held at theLawrence University Memorial Chapel, and written up byThe Post-Crescent (Appleton).

Butler gave the keynote address at his other alma mater,the UW Law School. He spokeduring the hooding ceremonyon May 18 at the MononaTerrace Convention Center inMadison. Butler is a member ofthe Law School’s Class of 1977,and was appointed to theWisconsin Supreme Court byGov. Jim Doyle in 2004,becoming the first African-American Supreme Court

justice in Wisconsin history. Former District Five court administrator Mary Kay

Baum was recognized in Madison Magazine for her tirelessefforts as executive director of Madison-area UrbanMinistry (MUM), a social action organization. In a columnheadlined “A Selfless Servant,” Baum was lauded as “aconstant reminder of the presence still of good people doingpublic service.”

Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson attended theJanuary dedication of the Washington County Courthouse,part of the larger Justice Center which underwent a $13.9million renovation, including numerous securityenhancements. Featured in The West Bend Daily News,Abrahamson commented on the greater likelihood of violent

outburst in family court, which many people overlook.“Court security issues tend to come up mostly in family lawmatters traditionally because emotions runhigh, children are involved and things theyhold dear to them are being threatened.”

Washington County Clerk of CourtKristine Deiss has been selected to serveas acting mayor of West Bend until thecity council picks a more permanentreplacement. Deiss was appointed to theWest Bend Common Council in 2005 tofill the aldermanic seat left vacant byformer Mayor Douglas Bade. Baderecently resigned to take a private-sectorjob in Louisville, Ky.

The Ohio University Press has published a new book on the saga of Joshua Glover, theescaped slave who found freedom in Wisconsin and sparkeda stand-off between the WisconsinSupreme Court and the federal courts overthe Fugitive Slave Act. The book, “TheRescue of Joshua Glover,” was written byH. Robert Baker, an assistant professor oflegal and constitutional history at GeorgiaTech University. It recently won theMilwaukee County Historical Society’sGambrinus Prize for best book-lengthcontribution to Milwaukee history during2006. The Glover story was the basis forthe Wisconsin supreme court play produced for the state’ssesquicentennial.

Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson received anhonorary doctorate of law degree from Roger WilliamsUniversity’s Ralph R. Papitto School of Law on May 18 inBristol, R.I. Abrahamson also was the featured speaker atthe law school’s commencement ceremony, where shedelivered her remarks “A View from the Bench.” Inconferring the degree, law school officials noted thesignificance and impact of some of Abrahamson’s manyaccomplishments: “Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson,your path-breaking judicial career, your dedication to publicservice and the administration of justice and yourintellectual curiosity serve as an example to all of ourgraduates, and we are honored to award you this Doctor ofLaws, honoris causa.” The degree, the 15th honorarydoctorate of law received by Abrahamson, was conferred byHon. Ronald A. Cass and Atty. Roscoe C. Howard,members of the law school’s board of directors. In herspeech, Abrahamson encouraged graduating law students tobe courageous and committed to democracy, justice andneutral, fair, impartial, non-partisan judiciary. She urgedthem to take risks in accepting and facing life’s challengesin their careers, relationships and exercising social andpolitical responsibility. f

PEOPLE continued from page 22

Justice Louis B. Butler Jr.

Joshua Glover

Chief Justice Shirley S.Abrahamson

gQh�i7j k�lmXn�n�o

p?q

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

r/s)t u�vxwzy�{%|�u�}continued from page 2

Chief judges are responsible for supervising judicialadministrative business in each of the state’s ten judicialdistricts. They manage the flow of cases, supervisepersonnel, develop budgets, and meet monthly as acommittee to work on issues of statewide importance.With the exception of Milwaukee, where the chief judge is a full-time administrator, chief judges and their deputiesmaintain court calendars in addition to handlingadministrative matters.

In the Fourth Judicial District, which encompassesCalumet, Fond du Lac, Manitowoc, Sheboygan, andWinnebago counties, Deputy Chief Judge Darryl W. Deets,Manitowoc County, succeeds Chief Judge L. EdwardStengel, Sheboygan County.

Deets, who has been deputychief judge since August 2001,has served on the SupremeCourt’s Judicial EducationCommittee and on the planningcommittee for the 2005 Benchand Bar Conference at which hewas a presenter.

In Manitowoc County, he ledseveral initiatives, includingsetting up a CASA (court-appointed special advocates)program and a victim impact

panel for repeat drunk drivers in Sheboygan, Manitowoc,and Calumet counties. He also started a mentoring programand served as a mentor for youth in the juvenile justicesystem. Judge Deets was appointed to the bench in 1998 andhas been re-elected since 1989.

Stengel, who has served as chief judge since August2001, is president of the Wisconsin Voluntary Trial JudgesAssociation. He is a past deputy chief judge and has servedon the Executive Committee of the Judicial Conference andon the Criminal Benchbook Committee.

In the Fifth Judicial District, which encompasses Dane,Green, Lafayette and Rock counties, Judge C. WilliamFoust, Dane County, succeeds Chief Judge Michael N.Nowakowski, Dane County.

Foust is a former DaneCounty district attorney whowas appointed as a judge in1997 and elected in 1998. Heserved as presiding judge ofthe Dane County criminaldivision from 2001 to 2005and has headed the CriminalBenchbook Committee since2002. He is a member of theDane County Criminal JusticeGroup and has served on the

Coordinated Community Response Task Force, first asdistrict attorney, and then as a judge, since 1989.

Nowakowski became chief judge in 2001 and wasselected as chair of the Committee of Chief Judges inAugust 2006. During his administrative tenure, he hasserved in a variety of key posts, including as chair andsecretary of the Judicial Conference. He also has served onthe Civil Benchbook Committee and the Supreme Court’sPlanning and Policy Advisory Committee’s Planning

Subcommittee. Most recently, Nowakowski chaired thecommittee that developed the new weighted-caseload study, and he helped oversee completion of the new DaneCounty Courthouse.

In the Seventh Judicial District, which encompassesBuffalo, Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Jackson, La Crosse,Monroe, Pepin, Pierce, Richland, Trempealeau and Vernoncounties, Judge William D. Dyke, Iowa County, succeedsChief Judge Michael J. Rosborough.

As circuit court judge in Iowa County, Dyke hasoverseen a variety of innovative outreach and diversionprograms, including a successful teen court. He’s a memberof PPAC’s Subcommittee on Effective Justice Strategies.Under his leadership, Iowa County became one of fivecounties in the state participating in Assess, Inform andMeasure (AIM) to help assess the needs and risks ofcriminal offenders. Dyke was appointed in 1997 and hasbeen re-elected since 1998.

During his 12 years in judicialadministration – six years each aschief judge and deputy chief judge– Rosborough has become knownfor his collaborative and supportivemanagement style. His district-wide training programs for judgeson topics such as domesticviolence, and child abuse andneglect became models for trainingprograms statewide. Rosboroughhas headed the PPAC CourtFinance Committee and the ChiefJudges Juror Selection andTreatment Subcommittee.

Chief judges re-appointed totheir posts include First DistrictChief Judge Kitty K. Brennan,Milwaukee, and Tenth DistrictChief Judge Benjamin D. Proctor,Eau Claire. The First Districtencompasses Milwaukee County;the Tenth Judicial Districtencompasses Ashland, Barron,Bayfield, Burnett, Chippewa, Douglas, Dunn, Eau Claire,Polk, Rusk, St. Croix, Sawyer, and Washburn counties.

Other chief judges are: ~District 2, Judge Gerald P. Ptacek, Racine County(District 2 encompasses Racine, Kenosha, and Walworthcounties) ~District 3, Judge J. Mac Davis, Waukesha County(District 3 encompasses Jefferson, Ozaukee,Washington, and Waukesha counties) ~District 6, Judge John R. Storck, Dodge County (District6 encompasses Adams, Clark, Columbia, Dodge, GreenLake, Juneau, Marquette, Portage, Sauk, Waushara, andWood counties) ~District 8, Judge Sue Bischel, Brown County (District 8encompasses Brown, Door, Kewaunee, Marinette,Oconto, Outagamie, and Waupaca counties) ~District 9, Judge Dorothy L. Bain, Marathon County(District 9 encompasses Florence, Forest, Iron,Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Menominee, Oneida,Price, Shawano, Taylor, and Vilas counties) �

Chief Judge L. Edward Stengel

Deputy Chief JudgeDarryl W. Deets

Chief Judge Michael N. Nowakowski

Judge C. William Foust

Judge William D. Dyke

Chief Judge Michael J.Rosborough

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

�����7� ����������

�?�

Prior to his legal career, Hanrahan led several social justice efforts includingan inner-city emergency food and clothing program in Milwaukee.

Hanrahan recently was selected for the Leader in the Law Award of theWisconsin Law Journal. He is also a recipient of the Stellman Justice for WomenAward. He lives in Middleton with his wife, Anne LeGare, and his three children,Katie, 8; Daniel, 10; and Joseph, 12.

Indiana lawyer is new appellate court clerk

Who is David R. Schanker?

a) A novelist and playwrightb) A guy who enjoys home fix-up projectsc) The clerk of Supreme Court and Court of Appealsd) A film buff and former teacher of film and creative writing e) All of the above

Given that this article appears in The Third Branch, one might guess Schankeris the new clerk of Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. But technicallyspeaking, “all of the above” is the best answer.

Schanker just relocated from Indianapolis, where he served as chief deputy tothe clerk of the Indiana Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and Tax Court – a job

he held for nearly eight years. He is moving toMadison with his wife Suzanne and youngestdaughter Julia. He started with the courts April 9.

When he spotted the Wisconsin job posting on anational listserv, he said he “jumped at it.” Thecouple already had a good impression of Wisconsinfrom visiting Stevens Point with their now college-age daughter Cheshire, who attended a violin campthere as a child. Contributing to Madison’s appeal,Schanker said, are the Capitol, the UW, and naturalresources such as the Arboretum.

While Cheshire has moved on to attendConnecticut College, the Schankers anticipate

Madison will be a good place to raise Julia, 6, whom the couple adopted fromChina last year.

Schanker grew up in New Jersey and lived in New York City for 15 years as“a starving artist,” working in theater and film before earning a law degree atIndiana University, as did Suzanne. He worked in private practice for four yearsin Indianapolis.

Schanker also holds an undergraduate degree in film and television from NewYork University and a master’s degree in writing from Columbia University. Hehas authored two legal-themed novels, A Criminal Appeal (St. Martin’s Minotaur,1998) and Natural Law (St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2001), and he’s working on athird. Both published novels focus on the appellate process and feature a leadcharacter named Nora Lumsey, who works as a law clerk in one novel and as apublic defender in the other.

The works are fiction, but people familiar with the Indiana court system maysee similarities to real figures and events of the mid-1990s, Schanker said.

As the couple works on relocating, Schanker is settling into the role thatbrought him to Madison. “I am delighted to be working with the Clerk’s Officestaff, a dedicated and professional group of people,” he said. “I look forward tocollaborating with CCAP and the other judicial agencies in improving theservices the Clerk’s Office provides to the courts, the bar, and the public.” �

NEW FACES continued from page 3

David R. Schanker

Chief Justice Shirley S.Abrahamson welcomed more

than 200 lawyers and judges whogathered to discuss the future of equalaccess to civil justice in Wisconsin atthe first Wisconsin Equal JusticeConference, held on March 16.Organized by the State Bar ofWisconsin Legal AssistanceCommittee, the conference was hostedby Marquette Law School.

Abrahamson told the audience(which also included Justice AnnWalsh Bradley) that increasing theavailability of civil legal serviceswould require collaborativepartnerships between the bench, barand academia to create permanentfunding streams for services, increase pro bono legal services anddevelop initiatives to help self-represented litigants.

Milwaukee County Judge RichardJ. Sankovitz, a member of the State Bar Access to JusticeCommittee, presented the results ofWisconsin’s first comprehensive civillegal needs study. The study, issued inMarch and titled “Bridging the JusticeGap: Wisconsin’s Unmet LegalNeeds,” reveals that more than500,000 Wisconsin residents faceserious civil legal problems withoutlegal assistance.

Meeting these legal needs was thetopic of the closing session, abrainstorming exercise facilitated byformer Justice Janine P. Geske, now adistinguished professor at MarquetteLaw School. The discussion waslively and engaging, and focused onhow to work and plan collaborativelyto ensure access to justice for allWisconsin citizens. �Much of the conference discussionfocused on other key findings andrecommendations contained in the newreport on unmet civil legal needs. Readthe report atwww.wisbar.org/committees/atj/study.

�/�x� �����+������� ��������� ���������������� ��7����� ���¡�7¢£�X¤¥�����¦���§��©¨ª�����«� �������¬��­�����¬����by Ann Zimmerman, statewide pro se coordinator

®Q¯�°7± ²�³´Xµ�µ�¶

·?¸

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

conduct the training, as did Clerk of Circuit Court DianeFremgen, Winnebago County; Deputy Clerk Susan Schaffer,Eau Claire County Circuit Court; and Deputy Bill Blumer,Dane County Sheriff’s Department.

¹)º�»½¼�¾)¿ À�º#¿ Á�Â�º�Á�ÃÄ¿ Å�Æ#¿ Á�Ç�È�Å%ÁQ¿ ÅFiling a Petition for Review, a new booklet developed

by Supreme Court Commissioner Nancy Kopp and formerClerk of Supreme Court Cornelia G. Clark, edited by CourtInformation Officer Amanda K. Todd, and designed byCricket Design Works, has been recognized as one of thetop two government publications produced in Wisconsinduring 2006.

The booklet, a plain-English instructional guide forlitigants and lawyers, tied for first place in the WisconsinLibrary Association’s Government Information RoundTable. The award will be presented in June.

The award recognizesdocuments that contributesignificantly to theexpansion of knowledge andpublic understanding ofgovernment agencies, andthat provide inspiration andpleasure to an identifiablereadership. Work isrecognized for clarity ofpresentation, typography,design and overall appeal.

The association willsubmit the publication for consideration by the AmericanLibrary Association for national honors. É

AWARDS continued from page 9

Awards of Exceptional AchievementThe Clark County Bar Association, for developing

and implementing a free legal clinic that offersresidents an opportunity to speak with a Wisconsinattorney on basic divorce, family matters, small claims,and probate issues. The clinic is open once a month atvarious locations.

The La Crosse County Bar Association, fordeveloping a custody assessment team DVD inresponse to comments from parents who felt a need tobetter understand the process.

The Marathon County Bar Association, whichreceived three awards for three separate projects,including the Hmong Legal Glossary, Hmong SmallClaims/Landlord Tenant brochures, and “Transitions:An Immigration Legal Resource Guide” inHmong/English and Spanish/English.

The Washington County Bar Association, which wasinstrumental in planning the conference entitled,Domestic Violence: The Batterer as a Parent. This one-day conference focused on strengthening therelationship between institutions and agencies that workto reduce domestic violence.

Awards of AchievementThe Dane County Bar Association, for preparing

divorce and paternity flow charts for use with theassociation’s family DVD series for pro se litigants.The association’s Delivery of Legal ServicesCommittee developed the flow charts to accompany itssecond DVD for unrepresented litigants going throughthe divorce or paternity process.

The Douglas County Bar Association, whichproduced an educational DVD for divorcing parents.

The Oneida-Vilas-Forest County Bar Association,which created a free legal clinic for residents of thethree-county area providing an opportunity to speakwith a lawyer about basic legal questions. Meetingswere held in four locations in Oneida, Vilas, and Forestcounties. The clinic closed due to lack of use by thegeneral public.

The Outagamie County Bar Association, whichestablished a safe exchange center where parents canexchange their children for placement purposes in asafe, neutral, supervised location. The project’s goal isto minimize the exposure of children to domestic violence.

The Portage County Bar Association, whichdeveloped “Justiceworks,” a public service initiativethat educates the public about the justice system andfacilitates citizen involvement to help bridge the gapsbetween the justice system and related communityneeds. Association members gave presentations to morethan 500 residents, including victims, youth and adultoffenders, families, elected officials, and community groups.

Each year, local and specialty bar associationsdevelop public service projects with funding from theState Bar’s Local Bar Grants Competition. Barassociations can receive up to $2,500. ÉVisit www.wisbar.org/bargrants to download anapplication. For more information, contact Kris Wenzel,State Bar outreach coordinator, at (800) 444-9404, ext. 6185, or (608) 250-6185.

ÊËÈ�Ì�º'»�¿ Å�Å%º�Ì�Á

In addition to the Hmong Glossary and the Jury Bailiff Training Program, the following programs also wonawards from the State Bar:

THE

TH

IRD

BR

AN

CH

Í�Î�Ï7Ð Ñ�ÒÓ�Ô�Ô�Õ

Ö?×

21 years on the bench, is District Atty. Scott L. Horne, whodefeated private practitioner Kara Burgos by a two-to-onemargin. Eliminated in the primary election was Atty. JohnBrinckman. Horne is a 1979 graduate of the UW LawSchool. He was sworn in May 14 to help deal with thebacklog that has accrued since Perlich’s retirement.

Pocan wins Milwaukee raceJudge William S. Pocan, appointed by Gov. Jim Doyle

last July to succeed JudgeMichael Sullivan, won electionto a full, 6-year term by amargin of about 1,000 votes outof about 80,000 cast. Pocan beatchallenger Christopher A.Liegel, an assistant districtattorney who ran on a ‘tough oncrime’ platform.

Pocan, a Kenosha native,entered college at age 16 and

law school at 20. He came to the bench after a 22-yearcareer in private practice emphasizing consumer law.

Sparta lawyer will succeed Judge AbbottAtty. Todd L. Ziegler, of the Sparta law firm of Gleiss,

Locante & Ziegler LLP, will succeed Judge Steven L.Abbott, who is retiring after 12 years on the bench inMonroe County (see separate story, page 18).

Ziegler defeated another private practitioner, Atty. MarkL. Goodman of the Sparta law firm of Osborne, Goodman &Tripp SC, by about 650 votes out of 6,700 votes cast.

Ziegler is a 1995 graduate of the UW Law School andserved as a law clerk to retired Court of Appeals JudgeGordon Myse, who endorsed him in the election. Ø

Ù�ÚÜÛxÝxÞ¥ßÜàIá�âcontinued from page 13 ã)ä'ä�å%å�ä�æ�ç è2ç ä�é

The following judges were elected or re-electedwithout opposition on April 3:

Court of Appeals: Daniel P. Anderson, District IIPaul Lundsten, District IV

Circuit Court:Michael Kirchman, Crawford CountyDiane M. Nicks, Dane CountyAndrew P. Bissonnette and John R. Storck,

Dodge CountyWilliam F. Hue, Jefferson CountyBarbara A. Kluka, Kenosha CountyRamona A. Gonzalez, La Crosse CountyDaryl W. Deets, Manitowoc CountyGregory Grau, Marathon CountyRichard O. Wright, Marquette CountyThomas G. Grover, Menominee/Shawano CountiesDominic S. Amato, Michael B. Brennan, and

Joseph R. Wall, Milwaukee CountyTom R. Wolfgram, Ozaukee CountyJohn V. Finn, Portage CountyGerald P. Ptacek, Racine CountyDaniel T. Dillon, Rock CountyEdward F. Vlack, St. Croix CountyTimothy M. Van Akkeren, Sheboygan CountyJohn A. Damon, Trempealeau CountyPatrick J. Faragher, Washington County Michael O. Bohren and Donald J. Hassin Jr.,

Waukesha County. Ø

Judge William S. Pocan

day, and there have been a lot of changes over the years,”Bien said.

Among those changes: an increase in juvenile courtwork, a dramatic increase in divorces, and – a positivedevelopment – the advent of information technology. Bien,who remembers setting up her own computer after attendinga Consolidated Court Automation Programs (CCAP)workshop, said technology has made her job “infinitelybetter” - particularly the advent of e-mail, which is ofspecial importance in small, rural counties whereopportunities for professional interaction are limited. “I’llmiss the people, the camaraderie with the other registrarsaround the state,” she said.

In all, Bien served five judges during her career: JudgeJoseph H. Riedner, Judge Gary Schlosstein, Judge Dane F.Morey, Judge James J. Duvall, and Judge John

Bartholomew, a circuit judge who came to Pepin Countywhen Riedner was county judge.

Bien’s retirement was reported in an Eau Claire Leader-Telegram article, where Duvall said, “She has the storehouseof knowledge that comes with long experience and attentionto the public.” He added that he would miss her wisdom andexpertise. “It will be like trying to replace the entiresystem.”

In retirement, Bien looks forward to spending more timewith her family, including husband Ronald, seven grownchildren (four of whom live in Eau Claire), and 16grandchildren. ØBy Amanda Todd, Tom Sheehan, and Brigid Moroney, CourtInformation Office.

RETIREMENTS continued from page 20

www.wicourts.gov

Deputy Director for CourtOperations Sheryl A. Gervasi is

celebrating 35 years with the courtsystem, casting doubt upon hercontention that she is still 39 years old.

Gervasi started with theAdministrative Director of the CourtsOffice – as it was then known – in1972. She worked in a clerical positionfor several years before her promotionto legislative assistant. That jobeventually became the legislativeliaison post, which Gervasi held untilher 2003 appointment as deputydirector.

In her current role, Gervasioversees a group of central-office staffas well as the district courtadministrators, working to providejudges and clerks of circuit court withtechnical assistance and managementhelp. This includes disseminatingrelevant legislative information,offering guidance as to the practicaleffects of new legislation, and setting

policies and procedures for courtmanagement. The office also providesstatistical data on circuit courtcaseload, manages theinterpreter program and theChildren’s Court ImprovementProgram, and provides staff forthe Planning and PolicyAdvisory Committee.

Gervasi’s institutional historyand people skills (which includea remarkable ability to say justabout anything to anyone) haveserved her well in the courtsystem. She counts many of thestate’s judges, the chief justice, andmembers of the Supreme Court amongher close friends. A number of judgesand legislators attended her 25thanniversary party in 1996.

Although she frequently threatensto retire, she insisted that no change isimminent – much to the relief of hercolleagues in Madison and judgesacross the state. ê

ëíì/ëïî ð�ñ�ò�ð%óGô�ð)î ð�õ�ó�ñ�öð�÷ùø�ú�û�ð�ñ�ó�÷Chief JusticeShirley S. Abrahamson

Director of State CourtsA. John Voelker

EditorAmanda K. Todd

Associate EditorC. Colleen Flesher

Contributing WritersDeborah BrescollBrigid MoroneyNancy RottierTom SheehanErin SlattengrenA. John VoelkerAnn Zimmerman

Editorial CommitteeHon. Michael J. RosboroughVernon County Circuit CourtGregg T. MooreDistrict Ten Court AdministratorCarolyn OlsonIowa County Clerk of CircuitCourt

Graphic Design/LayoutC. Colleen Flesher

The Third Branch is aquarterly publication of theDirector of State CourtsOffice, providing news ofinterest to the Wisconsincourt system.

Send questions, comments,and article ideas to: Amanda K. ToddCourt Information OfficerP.O. Box 1688Madison, WI 53701-1688phone(608) 264-6256e-mailamanda.todd@wicourts.govfax(608) 267-0980

Sheryl A. Gervasi

On Tuesday, June 19, for the first time in the history of the state, a statewideconference on self-representation will be held. Representatives of the courts

in all 10 Wisconsin judicial districts will come together to focus on improvingservices to people who represent themselves in court. The statewide conference isan outgrowth of last June’s first-ever joint meeting of the Ninth and TenthJudicial Districts in Chippewa Falls.

The program will focus on how to build the necessary infrastructure forsupporting sustainable court-based pro se programming; available resources forprogram development; and various Wisconsin-based model programs.

Judge Kevin S. Burke, who serves on the district court in Hennepin County,Minn., will deliver the keynote address on the connection between public trustand confidence in the justice system and pro se assistance. Burke is the recipient of many national awards for judicial leadership and excellence, and has spoken frequently both within the United States and in Canada, Mexico,China, India, and Ireland regarding improvement in judicial administration andcourt leadership.

Leading the program will be the respective chairs of the District 9 and District10 committees on self-represented litigants: Deputy Chief Judge Gary L. Carlson,Taylor County Circuit Court; Clerk of Court Karen Hepfler, Chippewa CountyCircuit Court; and Atty. Ann Zimmerman, who coordinates statewide pro seprojects as executive assistant to Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson. Directorof State Courts A. John Voelker will also participate.

More than 50 committee members and others – including judges, attorneys,court commissioners, clerks of court, registers in probate, staff from the State Bar and Wisconsin Judicare, academics, and community members areexpected to attend. For more about services for the self-represented litigants, see page 6.

The conference will run from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., June 19, at 212 River Drive inWausau. For more information, contact Ann Zimmerman at (608) 261-8297 orann.zimmerman@wicourts.gov.

ü�ý ó�÷�ö7þ ð�ÿ�ð�óI÷�ö7ñ�öð�� ý ò�ð���������ô��� �� ð%ó�ð� �ô�ð�÷�ð�ö