The Issues…

Issue 1: Your opponent is married to the current Clark County Judge (Branch I).  Is that a problem?

Yes, that is a problem!

Having husband and wife judges just doesn’t make sense.  If it doesn’t feel right to you in your gut, you’re not alone.  That feeling is because it doesn’t align with your values, and it doesn’t align with my values either.

Here are just three specific ways it doesn’t make sense:

1. It doesn’t make common sense.

One of the rights people have under Wisconsin law is for the substitution of a judge.  That means at the beginning of a case, either party can ask that a different judge be assigned to the case.  Wis. Stat. § 801.58.

It doesn’t feel right that your case could be assigned to the spouse of the judge you asked to substitute.

Where’s the common sense in that?

2. It doesn’t make dollars and cents.

At some point or another, every judge is going to have a conflict with a party to a case.  For example, a judge cannot serve in a case about a family member’s car accident.  In case of a conflict like that, a new judge is reassigned to the case.

One of the benefits of having two unrelated judges in Clark County is that they don’t share the same conflicts (for example, they have different families, different friends, etc.).

In those cases where out-of-County judges have to be brought in, it costs us taxpayers more money, and that’s why it doesn’t make “cents” for Clark County.

3. It doesn’t make practical sense.

If a law enforcement officer needs a warrant at 2:00 in the morning, they have to contact the judge to get it signed.  If the Clark County judge isn’t available, those officers have to contact an out-of-county judge to sign the warrant instead.  In some cases, they may even have to travel to the other judge’s county.   This could end up costing taxpayers money for the wasted time trying (and failing) to get ahold of the Clark County judge, money for any extra travel (if necessary), and more importantly, costing our officers extremely valuable time away from the communities they protect.  Even a few minutes can make a difference.

Instead, a benefit to having unrelated judges would be that if one judge is away on vacation, or has a sick child, etc., then the other would be available for warrants.

Which situation makes more practical sense to you?

Vote WILL BRATCHER for Clark County Judge, April 4^th, 2023.

Issue 2:  Would husband and wife judges be a conflict of interest? Isn’t there a rule against it?

Technically, it isn’t illegal for a husband and wife to be the only two judges in a county.  But, we all know that just because something is legal doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do.

There have already been conflicts created by his running for judge of Branch II when his wife is judge of Branch I.  For example, he has approached many people who appear in his wife’s court on a routine basis for endorsements.  I think that it is wrong to put people in that position, and I think it raises questions about his judgment if he can’t see the position it puts them in.

Ultimately, in order for our system of justice to work, people need faith that it is being carried out with integrity, impartiality, and fundamentally fairly.  That is why it makes it all the more important that the public has faith in our government, especially at the local level.

That is why we cannot let one family hold all of the power in our courts, even if he is a nice guy.  That simply isn’t how the founders intended our system to work and doesn’t inspire greater faith in the integrity of our courts.

Vote WILL BRATCHER for Clark County Judge, April 4th, 2023.