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Judge Roderick A. Cameron |
Judge Roderick A. Cameron celebrated his 25th anniversary on the Chippewa County Circuit Court bench on April 1. Cameron was originally appointed in 1983 by then-Gov. Anthony S. Earl, and was elected in 1984, 1990, 1996, 2002 and 2008. On the same day this year, his brother Howard Cameron was elected to the St. Croix County Circuit Court.
Washington County Clerk of Court Kristine Deiss became the first woman elected mayor of West Bend. Deiss was appointed to the post last June to serve the remainder of Douglas Bade's term. Bade resigned after taking a job in Kentucky. Deiss defeated challenger Michael Christianson with more than 59 percent of votes. Deiss credits the experience she has had in the position for helping her win the full term. "The voters chose someone who has experience, and that carried me through the day," she told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The Treatment Alternatives and Diversion (TAD) program, a state-financed program designed to address the issue of substance abuse problems in the corrections system, has diverted more than 400 people from the courts and into treatment programs since it began in March 2007. Ryan Sugden, speaking for the state Office of Judicial Assistance, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel the program has been an alternative and successful option to address the overwhelming need for substance abuse treatment in communities and the state prison system. The program targets non-violent criminal offenders with drug abuse problems. According to Holly Szablewski, judicial review coordinator, 63 percent of people discharged from the program who had deferred prosecution agreements successfully completed the six-month program without committing another offense. The success rate for those who entered into a diversion agreement was 57 percent. "The whole idea is to try to get people into treatment and community-based services as an alternative to normal case processing, adjudication and sentencing," Szablewski told the Journal Sentinel. In addition to benefitting offenders with drug abuse problems, the program saves money by keeping these people out of the criminal justice system.
Manitowoc County Circuit Court Judge Patrick L. Willis recently presided over a criminal damage to property and criminal trespass case. His courtroom was packed with second graders who were there to hear the trial of the State of Wisconsin vs. Big Bad Wolf. Willis, who is also Law Day chairman for Manitowoc County, coordinated with the Manitowoc County Bar Association and renowned children’s theater representative R.J. Skrepenski to create the mock trial of the story of The Three Little Pigs for Law Day. More than 800 students and teachers were able to watch the trial over the three days it ran. Photos can be viewed here (external link). On May 1, Willis also coordinated a free legal advice booth in the courthouse law library.
This year marks the 30th anniversary of Cameras in the Courtroom. In March of 1978, the Wisconsin Supreme Court released guidelines to govern an experimental trial period to allow cameras in the courtroom. Mark Hertzberg, photo editor of The (Racine) Journal Times, recalled the first day under the guidelines.
"The date is ingrained in my memory because I shot in court on April 1, 1978," Hertzberg told The Third Branch. "There was a rare Saturday trial in Beloit, where I worked at the time."
By 1979, only 13 other states allowed cameras in their courtrooms. In the 1950s and 60s cameras were banned in courtrooms across the country. The debate over cameras in the courtroom was reopened in the 1970s, when supporters argued that the public had a right to see what happens at a trial, and technology allowed for smaller, more portable cameras. Opponents still believed that cameras and media coverage would create too much of a distraction from the trials.
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