Another justice recuses in court choking case

Justice Prosser accused of violating judicial ethics

MADISON, Wis. — State Supreme Court Justice Ann Walsh Bradley has stepped out of a fading disciplinary case against fellow Justice David Prosser.

The Wisconsin Judicial Commission has accused Prosser of violating judicial ethics when he allegedly placed his hands around Bradley’s neck during an argument in front of four other justices last year. Prosser’s punishment is up to his fellow justices.

He asked the six other justices to recuse themselves from the case. By last August three had complied, preventing a quorum and essentially scuttling the complaint.

Bradley issued a decision Wednesday recusing herself. She still complained in the decision that Prosser grabbed her neck, noting police had developed a security plan for her weeks before the incident because Prosser was growing agitated.

She also ripped Justice Pat Roggensack for minimizing the court’s internal conflicts as Roggensack pushes for re-election.