Elected to six-year terms, circuit court judges enjoy broad autonomy and far-reaching authority in the cases they oversee.
Editor’s note: This story was originally published on Wisconsin Watch’s website.
This story was produced as part of the NEW (Northeast Wisconsin) News Lab, a consortium of six news outlets covering northeastern Wisconsin.
Next week Wisconsinites in 34 counties will elect some of the most powerful office holders in their communities: circuit court judges.
Making up the bottom tier of the state’s court system, Wisconsin’s 261 circuit court judges collectively handle hundreds of thousands of cases each year, ranging from speeding tickets to murder trials to challenges to state law. Elected to six-year terms, circuit court judges enjoy broad autonomy and far-reaching authority in the cases they oversee.
Despite that power, just 10 of…
