NYT: Wisconsin Judge Said to Have Attacked Colleague

[deminks]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/us/26judge.html?_r=1&smid=tw-nytimes&seid=auto

CHICAGO — That the members of the Wisconsin Supreme Court were deeply divided has hardly been a secret of late. When the justices this month decided a law curtailing collective bargaining rights for public workers should come into effect, one of the dissenting justices openly accused the other side of a “partisan slant.”

But signs of a strong philosophical debate within the court reached a different level with a report published on Saturday suggesting that the argument had, shortly before the release of the ruling on collective bargaining, turned physical.

The report by the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism and Wisconsin Public Radio described an episode in which three unnamed sources said that Justice David T. Prosser had grabbed another justice, Ann Walsh Bradley, around the neck during an argument in her chambers this month. According to the report, Justice Prosser declined to comment on the accusation.

Neither of the justices could be reached for comment on Saturday, and officials from the Wisconsin Capitol Police and the Wisconsin Judicial Commission, which monitors judicial behavior and standards, did not return telephone calls.

(end snip)

Now maybe there will be more coverage?

[iwishiwas]

1. "She charged him (Prossor) with fists raised," the source said.-WI

ummm. damm. two totally different versions.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/124546064.html


....Before leaving, Prosser "put his hands around her neck in what (Bradley) described as a chokehold," the source said.

"He did not exert any pressure, but his hands were around her neck," the source said.

The source said the act "was in no way playful."

But another source told the Journal Sentinel that Bradley attacked Prosser.

"She charged him with fists raised," the source said.

Prosser "put his hands in a defensive posture," the source said. "He blocked her."..........

[Ellipsis]

2. Well then... he'd deny it and he hasn't.

I don't believe it.

[iwishiwas]

4. I do not either. But with two conflicting stories, they will have

to sort out the details. Which person is saying what. any investigation by the judicial commission is secret. Time for a prosecutor to get involved.

[deminks]

5. WPR has at least 3 sources who concur with the first version of events.

Only JS Online, a very right leaning newspaper, has the source with the other version. If he was defensive or joking, he would have said so. His MO is to blame others for his mistakes. There is a long history here as well of outbursts. We shall see.

[iwishiwas]

6. Well, I certainly hope you are right.

[snagglepuss]

9. He has a history of angry outbursts. I wonder if she has a temper or a

history of angry outbursts. I'm having a hard time believing a female judge is going to attack a male judge with her fists. Not that it can't happen it just seems unlikely.

[tsuki]

12. According to one source, she told him to leave her office. If she

was going to attack him, why tell him to leave?

[gkhouston]

13. from The Nation...

"Justice Bradley, a veteran jurist broadly seen as the court’s most congenial member, had raised questions about Justice Prosser’s attempt to have the court rubberstamp the governor’s plan – as the Republican-controlled chambers of the legislature had previously done."

I'm not a local, so I don't know how broadly she's known as being congenial, but I'm guessing if she had Prosser's anger issues, the bit I've just quoted would draw some derisive snorts from the WI crowd.


link to The Nation's article: http://www.thenation.com/blog/161654/wisconsin-governor-walkers-chief-judicial-ally-accused-physically-attacking-jurist-who-d

[patrice]

8. At minimum: "charged"? & "raised"? SOP fascist tactics = over-react and mis-characterize

the slightest things.

[pacalo]

14. Frustrated clenched fists are different than a frustrated pair of hands on her neck.

How small-minded could the "source" be to offer that a hand gesture is justification for a choke hold?

[LiberalAndProud]

16. Prosser's penchant for losing his temper compared to Bradley's history?

Who to believe? It's a quandry! Okay, not really.

[Ellipsis]

3. Looks like this will last for a couple days.

[patrice]

7. In March, he also called their Justice Abrahamson a bitch. nt

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. Assault and Battery... that is the technical charge

who will file and will she insist on charges?

[pacalo]

15. In any case, it's behavior unbecoming to the highest court in Wisconsin.

And, sadly, I'm catching on to the prevailing mindthink: She will probably let it slide. I'm still burning about Kloppenberg's not pursuing an investigation. I was THIS close to sending money. Fool me once, yadayadayada.

[AtomicKitten]

11. file assault charges and bounce his ass off the bench

he stole the seat anyway so all's well that ends well

[Psephos]

17. If that happens, Walker gets to pick his replacement.

No doubt it would be someone even more conservative and younger.