Supreme Court Justice David Prosser recused himself from a First Amendment case involving his campaign attorney last Thursday after ethics experts said there would be a conflict of interest if he was to participate.
His campaign attorney, Jim Troupis, was paid $75,000 to help fund the recount efforts for the Supreme Court race between Prosser and Asst. Attorney General JoAnne Kloppenburg, who he narrowly beat.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Prosser recused himself after numerous experts said a justice cannot participate in a case in which a reasonable person would question his or her impartiality.
The Troupis Law Office issued a statement recognizing their disappointment the case could not be heard by all seven members.
""The hundreds of attorneys and volunteers who worked to preserve Justice Prosser's victory in the Spring Supreme Court Recount trust that Justice Prosser will make clear in the coming days that his recusal will be strictly limited to this one matter,"" the statement read.
The Wisconsin Education Association Council, the state's largest teachers' union, filed a motion seeking his recusal questioning Prosser's ability to be impartial.
His recusal comes a week after a special prosecutor cleared him of criminal charges for a June 13 altercation with Justice Ann Walsh Bradley.
Police reports from the incident indicated Prosser touched Bradley's neck after she approached him during a heated debate about releasing the court's collective bargaining decision.
In an interview with Dane County Detective Peter Hansen, Prosser called his move ""reflexive"", saying Bradley ""charged [at him]"" with her fist raised. Prosser told detectives he immediately removed his hands when he realized what happened.
""What does any self-respecting man do when suddenly that man finds that his hands, or part of his hands are on a woman's neck? Get them off the neck as soon as possible,"" Prosser said in the interview.
Prosser reiterated several times he felt he did not do anything wrong during the incident.
Bradley said it would be out-of-character for her to raise her fist, according to Hansen's report, and that she was in complete control. Bradley said the incident is nothing political but about workplace safety.
The reports from the remaining five judges are varied.
Sauk County District Attorney Patricia Barrett, who was selected as a special prosecutor, announced no charges would be filed August 25.
The Supreme Court Judicial Commission continues its investigation into the incident.
