From Dan Gartzke, Attorney

New Glarus

To the Editor:

I encourage you to vote for Faun Phillipson for Green County Circuit Court, Branch 1, in the April 6 judicial election.

I endorse Faun because she has the widest array of experiences, both in terms of matters handled (criminal and civil), and courts where she has appeared. She brings to the bench experiences representing all sides of various matters. No one can have practiced in all areas of the law, but Faun has done much work, and all of it is significant. She brings skills honed in courts across this country. She knows what works in a court room, and will apply those skills for the benefit of Green County citizens.

I endorse Faun because she has local roots and has chosen to return to this community. She has served on various boards. She has volunteered her time through the Green County Family Law Legal Clinic and the Green County literacy project. Faun and I have worked together for over a decade as coaches of the New Glarus Mock Trial Team. She spent a weekend in February before the primary at our annual regional tournament. The fact that she donated two days of her time, at that critical point, speaks volumes for her commitment to our young people. 

I think in his recent letter Attorney Knoke hit the nail on the head: While Faun’s opponent touts her 2,300 largely criminal cases she administered over ten years, that is not the whole story. That works out to about one case — misdemeanor or felony — per working day. That caseload may be a testament to stamina, but does not demonstrate courtroom knowledge. A county judge must handle many different kinds of cases, not just criminal matters.

Further, her campaign literature claims that Faun has handled but six Green County cases over the years. This creates an inaccuracy by omission, as it does not consider the many cases Faun has handled in other jurisdictions, or her other work helping clients with wills, real estate transactions, and employment matters.

The bottom line to me is that voters should not confuse quantity for quality. I think we need a judge with Faun’s quality of experience.

I think we would be well served by electing Faun Phillipson as our next Circuit Court Judge, and I ask you to join me in voting for her on April 6.

Thank you.