Third Branch eNews

Three bipartisan bills the Wisconsin Supreme Court requested in response to threats of violence against judges were signed into law by Governor Tony Evers on March 27. Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Jill J. Karofsky was in attendance for the signing, as were Court of Appeals Judge Maria Lazar; St. Croix County Circuit Judge Scott Nordstrand, who serves as the vice chair of the Legislative Committee of the Judicial Conference; Karley Klein, Chief Legal Counsel in the Director of State Courts Office, and many others.

The Judicial Security Package was developed by the Legislative Committee of the Judicial Conference at the request of Chief Justice Annette Kingsland Ziegler, who has prioritized judicial safety. The committee, consisting of members of the judiciary, worked with the assistance of other judicial colleagues to craft the following bills:

• AB 965: Picketing and Parading (Representatives Tusler and Stubbs; Cosponsored by Senators Wanggaard and Taylor)
• AB 966: Judicial Officer Privacy (Representatives Tusler and Ortiz-Velez; Cosponsored by Senators Wanggaard and Taylor)
• AB 967: Withholding Judicial Security Profiles from Public Access (Representatives Tusler and Ortiz-Velez; Cosponsored by Senators Wanggaard and Taylor)

“Judicial security has been a priority of mine throughout my time as the Chief Justice, particularly so following the senseless murder of Judge John Roemer in 2022. Judge Roemer was murdered at his own home by a man the judge had sentenced to prison years earlier. Unfortunately, this tragic situation is not an outlier. Across the country, threats and acts of judicial violence and intimidation have been on the rise. That reality is unacceptable: it is a basic tenet of judicial independence that judges should not be intimidated, influenced, threatened, or killed for doing their job,” said Chief Justice Ziegler. “Today, I wish to thank our bipartisan bill sponsors and cosponsors for their tireless work to get this package over the finish line. And, I wish to thank Governor Evers for signing our judicial security package into law. I am glad to see that judicial security is supported across the aisle. This package is a much-needed step in the right direction to provide safety and security to our judicial officers. May we all continue to do our part, individually and collectively, to provide a safe court system. We will have more work to do in the days ahead to ensure our judicial officers are safely able to carry out their important work. But today, I pause to celebrate these positive steps.”

The Picketing and Parading bill signed into law makes it a Class A misdemeanor to picket or demonstrate near a justice’s home ‘with the intent to interfere with, obstruct, or impede the administration of justice’ or influence a judge in carrying out their duties. The penalty is up to a $10,000 fine and nine months imprisonment.

The Judicial Officer Privacy law establishes privacy protections for judicial officers and procedures for them to request state government agencies, persons, businesses, associations, and data brokers protect their personal information and the personal information of their immediate family. It makes it a Class G felony to knowingly publicly post or display on the Internet personal information about a judicial officer or their family to increase or create a threat to the health and safety of a judicial officer or a family member, and bodily injury or death of the judicial officer or a family member of the judicial officer is a natural and probable consequence of the posting or display.

The final newly signed law provides an exemption for judicial security profiles used to develop emergency response plans, which include personal details of a judge and family members, from disclosure under the public records law.

Judge Michael Bohren is the chair of the Planning and Policy Advisory Committee’s subcommittee on Court Security. He said the new laws were necessary to ensure judges faithfully execute their duties without fear of threats.

“Each of three judicial security laws are necessary to enhance the safety of judicial officers in light of the increased threats to judges. A judge’s privacy is critical to ensuring their protection,” Judge Bohren said. ”The laws signed by Governor Evers are a first step forward in strengthening judicial safety and security.”

Gov. Evers expressed his satisfaction with the bipartisan package. He emphasized the new laws represent a critical milestone towards establishing a safer and more secure community for all.

“We’ve made important progress this legislative session to make our communities safer, and that includes this bipartisan package of bills to increase the privacy and security of those who serve their communities from the bench across our state,” said Gov. Evers. “Judges should be able to make decisions and do the right thing without fearing for their personal safety or their family’s safety. These bills will move us in the right direction by keeping their residential addresses private and taking other steps to deter harassment and intimidation of judicial officers.”