“This is highly unusual. This is a wrecking ball” – Director of State Courts Randy Koschnick
The extremely left-wing and partisan “Janet Protasiewicz court” is about to take its first shot against conservatives in Wisconsin with the planned unprecedented firing of respected Director of State Courts Randy Koschnick, while he is out of state and without conservative justices being informed, Wisconsin Right Now has learned.
Although Koschnick has been an innovative, non-partisan director who is respected by judges on both sides of the aisle and who has avoided making political statements in the post, he once ran as a conservative for state Supreme Court against liberal icon Shirley Abrahamson, and he was appointed to the State Courts Director post by the state Supreme Court in 2017. Thus, his planned termination smacks of the new “Janet court’s” first attempt to undo the old conservative majority’s actions.
“This is sad but unsurprising considering the newest Justice campaigned on her political values,” former Republican AG candidate Eric Toney said in a tweet. He is the Fond du Lac County DA. “If this firing happens it could be the first step in a left wing politicization of the court. This should concern all Wisconsinites and it makes the 2025 Supreme Court race crucial.”
We are calling the new liberal majority the “Janet court” because Protasiewicz’s election flipped control to the left.
In an exclusive interview with Wisconsin Right Now, Koschnick said that Justice Jill Karofsky called him on July 31, 2023, and told him that “tomorrow the court is going to vote to terminate me.” Karofsky is a left-wing justice.
He said that new Justice Janet Protasiewicz, whose election cemented the liberal majority on the court, will be part of that majority. Koschnick said that he was told the court has enough votes to fire him, but Karofsky would not give him a reason, and the vote is happening without an agenda, without a regularly scheduled session, and while he is out of state.
Koschnick said that Justice Rebecca Bradley did not know about his planned firing until he called her Monday. She is a conservative. He said he does not believe conservative Justice Annette Ziegler was told by the new liberal majority either. He is not sure where sometime-conservative justice Brian Hagedorn stands on the matter.
“Rebecca Bradley was not aware of any vote until I called her and no conference is scheduled until September,” he said.
“I told her (Karofsky) that there is no agenda before September, no meeting scheduled. I said, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong. I’ve gotten awards from the state bar for being an innovator. I’ve never had a complaint,'” Koschnick told WRN. “She said we have the votes to terminate me tomorrow. This is highly unusual. This is a wrecking ball.”
Koschnick, the former chief Judge of Jefferson, Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington Counties, who was appointed to be director of state courts by the state Supreme Court in 2017, said the action was “so unprecedented,” repeating that there is “no meeting, conference, public hearing, agenda. I asked for a reason because I am highly competent, and she did not deny that.”
Koschnick said Karofsky did not provide a reason.
“I was shocked,” he said. “I can’t think of any reason.”
Asked if he thinks it’s political because he ran as a conservative for state Supreme Court once, Koschnick said, “it has that appearance.” He reiterated, “I’ve never made any political statements or actions” in that position. “I can’t speculate on motive, but it’s highly unusual.”
He said that, since he serves at the pleasure of the state Supreme Court, normally he would expect all members of the court to be consulted, but the conservatives weren’t even told.
Koschnick told “them I was out of state at a conference for state court administrators until Thursday. No response.”
He said that “normally the chief justice sets the agenda, and they have a scheduled conference and discuss it, and the entire court votes, either closed or open, with an agenda.”
He said the court is not even in session but has a regularly scheduled conference set for September to discuss administrative matters.
Koschnick was a lawyer for 14 years, and then a circuit judge in Jefferson County for 18 years. He said he received the innovation award for keeping the courts open and running during COVID.
Asked for key accomplishments, he said that he put together a chief justices mental health summit “to bring stakeholders around the state together to reach mental health needs before people end up in jail.” He “largely resolved the state court reporter” shortage with extensive outreach and training. He said that “judges across the political spectrum all tell me I’ve done a good job. I’ve never been accused of anything; never made political statements.”
Before she was elected, Protasiewicz took the unprecedented action of telling voters that she was left-wing on a series of partisan issues, from declaring Act 10 unconstitutional to declaring that she supports abortion.
