MEET THE CANDIDATES FOR gRANT cOUNTY cIRCUIT cOURT JUDGE

Just a couple counties have primary elections this month for circuit court seats. In Grant County, three candidates vie for the seat now held by Judge Robert VanDeHey, who chose not to run for reelection.

Grant County

The primary election is coming up on Tuesday, February 21. There's a statewide primary for an open seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, too.

Wisconsin Justice Initiative asked each of the Grant County Circuit Court candidates to answer a series of questions. Two candidates responded, and their answers are presented here as submitted. The questions are patterned after some of those on the job application Gov. Evers uses when he is considering judicial appointments.

Lisa A. Riniker is the Grant County district attorney. She received her law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School. 

Jeffrey W. Erickson is a criminal defense attorney in the office of the State Public Defender. He, too, received his law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School. His resume is here.

Candidate Jennifer Day did not respond to the questionnaire.

LISA A. RINIKER

JEFFREY W. ERICKSON​

​Why do you want to become a judge? 

Moving up to the bench has been a career goal for quite some time.  I enjoy being in the courtroom and look forward to presiding over a variety of cases.  I feel that I have the necessary temperament to run a respectful, efficient courtroom and want the citizens of Grant County to be able to engage with the judiciary in a positive way. 

Name one of the best (and worst) United States or Wisconsin Supreme Court opinions in the last thirty years and explain why you feel that way.

I can’t point to any one case because they are all important to the parties involved.  A case that is meaningless to one person may be the case that changed another person’s life. 

Describe your judicial philosophy.

I do not believe that judicial activism is appropriate, especially at the circuit court level.  I would apply the law as written and not legislate from the bench.

Describe the two most significant cases in which you were involved as either an attorney or a judicial officer.

I prosecuted a home health care nurse who transferred a significant amount of money from her client to herself over a long period of time. There were several unique circumstances which led to a variety of my colleagues advising that I would not win the case. I still moved forward and after a three day trial, was successful. A second case I’m proud of seems rather trivial, but is worth noting. It was simply a speeding ticket. The defense attorney wanted me to amend the ticket to a different subsection that would not impose a mandatory suspension. I refused to do so because I wanted to treat everyone in that predicament (a common one), the same. We wound up going through a jury trial where I was successful. The defense attorney then appealed the matter arguing that the wrong statute was used. Briefs were filed and the Court of Appeals sided with me. I guess I’m trying to say that I don’t back down from hard work just because it’s easier.

Describe your legal experience as an advocate in criminal litigation, civil litigation, and administrative proceedings. 

I have been the Grant County District Attorney for 18 years.  My job consists of prosecuting crimes of all natures; from disorderly conduct to homicides. We also handle juvenile matters including child in need of protection or services cases, delinquency cases, and termination of parental rights cases. Prior to my present employment, I worked at Kopp, McKichan Law Firm in Platteville, where I handled a variety of cases including criminal defense, civil cases for both the plaintiff and defendant, family law and a little bit of probate work involving wills.  Prior to that employment, I worked at a law firm in Chicago, where I would sue car manufacturers on behalf of people who found themselves with “lemons.”  My first job out of law school was with a firm in Madison where I was doing insurance defense work in medical malpractice claims. 

Have you ever been convicted of a crime, either misdemeanor or felony? If so, explain. When did the incident(s) occur? 
​Have you ever been cited for a municipal offense? If so, explain. When did the incident(s) occur?

I have never been convicted of a crime nor cited for a municipal offense.

Do you support requiring any justice to recuse him/herself from cases involving donors and indirect supporters who contribute money or other resources to the judge's election? If not, why not? If so, why? What contribution limits would you set? 

I think that depends on the circumstances. In my campaign, my donors are family and friends. I would recuse myself from any case involving them regardless of any contribution. In larger races, there are certainly donors who do not personally know the candidate. If the person is a substantial contributor whose name is remembered, the judge should recuse. However, if the contribution is one of hundreds of small contributions and there is no personal knowledge of the person moving forward, I don’t believe a judge should be required to recuse.  

What are the greatest obstacles judges face when trying to deliver true justice? What can or should be done about them?  

(Not answered)

Provide any other information you feel would be helpful to potential voters deciding for whom to vote.

I am the local choice. I grew up on a dairy farm in Ellenboro and graduated from Platteville High School. My undergraduate degree is from UW-Madison and my law degree is from UW Law School. My husband is a graduate of Cuba City High School. Our oldest went to school at Southwest Tech and is a lineman. Our middle child is graduating from UW-Platteville and is moving on to graduate school for athletic training at UW-Madison. Our youngest is presently a freshman at Platteville High School. I am proud to call Grant County home and believe I have the insight into the community standards and values like no other candidate.

​Why do you want to become a judge? 

Serving as a judge is both a privilege and an act of public service, a chance to give back to the community. It is hard to imagine a more gratifying occupation than one that has the chance to: change people’s lives for the better; to enable justice for a victim; and to see to it that fundamental fairness prevails. I have always been a trial lawyer - the ability to listen is essential to a trial lawyer. Likewise, the ability to listen to all parties is an essential quality for a judge to possess. I also feel it is necessary for a judge to have the ability to make both the lawyers and their clients feel that their case has been given serious consideration. I have striven throughout my career to treat all parties with respect.    

Name one of the best United States or Wisconsin Supreme Court opinions in the last thirty years and explain why you feel that way. 

Crawford v. Washington, 124 S.Ct. 1354, a 2004 U.S. Supreme Court case that stopped the erosion of the 6th amendment right to confront in court one’s accusers. The right to confrontation is really the bedrock of the right to a jury trial, requiring witnesses to face the acid bath that is cross examination and thereby test the truth of what they are trying to assert. The opinion references Sir Walter Raleigh and how, without the ability to cross-examine his accusers, he felt he was being tried by the Spanish Inquisition. Without being able to challenge people face to face the law (sic).
 
Name one of the worst United States or Wisconsin Supreme Court opinions in the last thirty years and explain why you feel that way.

Kelo v. City of New London, 125 S.Ct. 2655, a 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing a City's exercise of eminent domain power in furtherance of economic development plan, saying it satisfied constitutional “public use” requirement, even though city was not planning to open condemned land to use by the general public. Here the Supreme Court allowed a Connecticut municipality to tear down a working-class neighborhood so that private developers would have a place to build a luxury hotel, a conference center, and other exclusive properties. In other words, the Supreme Court gave private power to use on behalf of private gain, rather than public use.
 
Describe your judicial philosophy. 

My judicial philosophy is one in which a judge decides cases based on the dictates of the law, without allowing my personal preferences to influence the decision.  Judges are bound by precedent – that is, the higher courts’ decisions, but there are cases of first impression. That means that a case is unique and its facts will have never been addressed by a Court before. In that situation a judge does have to use their own power of analysis, and I would be guided by my knowledge of what is fair.

Describe the two most significant cases in which you were involved as either an attorney or a judicial officer. 

The two cases I did with the most media coverage were homicide cases, for both of which I was the only defense attorney at trial. However, to me significance arises in the consequence to the client, and therefore a more significant case, if not as high profile , is where the jury found my client not guilty and I believed the facts showed my client was innocent. This happened most recently last Fall. Then a young man was acquitted of all four counts of domestic abuse, as upon cross examination it became clear that the complaining witness’ story  was ultimately improbable, if not impossible. 

Describe your legal experience as an advocate in criminal litigation, civil litigation, and administrative proceedings. 

In my 21 plus years as a trial attorney, I have handled thousands of cases. I have done so many criminal jury trials I lost count years ago. I have done more than any defense attorney I know. I once did 15 criminal jury trials in a span of 11 months. Likewise I have done dozens of administrative hearings, perhaps a hundred, such as probation revocation hearings. I have only done four civil jury trials.

Have you ever been convicted of a crime, either misdemeanor or felony? If so, explain. When did the incident(s) occur?

​No.

Have you ever been cited for a municipal offense? If so, explain. When did the incident(s) occur?

I had a parking ticket in Madison, if that’s what is meant here. I have no idea when - a long time ago. 

Do you support requiring any justice to recuse him/herself from cases involving donors and indirect supporters who contribute money or other resources to the judge's election? If not, why not? If so, why? What contribution limits would you set? 

Of course a judge should recuse themselves in such a situation. The optics of such a situation could lead to doubt in the public’s mind as to the fairness of the proceedings. The suggestion of judicial impropriety could prove fatal to the public trust in the justice system. I believe the contribution limits now set by the Wisconsin Ethics Commission are sufficient. At the Circuit Court level, in rural Wisconsin I doubt people are getting inundated with donors. 

What are the greatest obstacles judges face when trying to deliver true justice? What can or should be done about them?  

The greatest obstacle to a judge would be the caseloads, especially for Circuit Court Judges who have to preside over such a wide swath of jurisprudence: criminal, civil, family law, small claims, civil suits, traffic tickets, county ordinances, etc. There needs to be some exploration of alternate resolutions, such as greater use of mediation in civil contexts, or diversion agreements in juvenile dispositions. If not that, then an increase in funds available for lesser courts, such as municipal courts, to take over the load for issues such as tickets, or small claims. Without it it is very difficult for judges to make timely dispositions of legal issues. True justice is difficult to achieve when one has to wait a long time for one’s day in court. One can never bring back lost time.  

Provide any other information you feel would be helpful to potential voters deciding for whom to vote.

I am very familiar with all of the actors in our local criminal justice scene. My entire legal career I have been based out of Grant County, and as the Local Attorney Manager for the Public Defender’s Office for the four counties in the southwest corner of Wisconsin, I have also got to participate in all of the local treatment courts. In my previous role as a private attorney I ranged widely and got to practice in front of a lot of judges, and have seen many different approaches as to how to adjudicate the law. I have tried to learn from everyone.