Wis. Justice Sees Politics Behind Ethics Complaint Over his Election Ad
A Wisconsin Supreme Court justice accused in an ethics complaint of misrepresenting facts in a campaign ad says the allegations are “unfortunate” and an attempt to politicize the election after the fact.
Justice Michael Gableman commented on the complaint in an interview with the Wisconsin Law Journal.
He’s not letting the allegations bother him. He plans to rise above “outside distractions” and concentrate on his new duties, he told the publication. The ethics complaint was filed in early October, two months after Gableman began his 10-year term.
The ad had accused Gableman’s opponent, Louis Butler, of finding a “loophole” in the case of a child rapist, who went on to rape another child. The ethics complaint says Butler did represent a convicted child rapist on appeal, but the state supreme court ruled the trial error asserted by Butler did not warrant a new trial. The defendant was not released until he was paroled.
The newspaper asked Gableman if he regrets running the ad. “That’s an excellent question,” he said, “but one which will be addressed at the appropriate time in the appropriate place.”
