Opinion ID: 764849
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Duties of Commissioner Halloway

Text: 3 Harry Halloway is 82 years old and has been employed by Milwaukee County as a Judicial Court Commissioner since 1974. Commissioner Halloway has presided over Traffic, Intake, Criminal, Small Claims, Preliminary and Children's Courts. Wisconsin Statute sec. 757.69 delineates in detail the role played by a court commissioner. Commissioners are assigned some limited responsibilities that are performed traditionally by judges. For example, sec. 757.69(1) provides that, [o]n authority delegated by a judge ... and with the approval of the chief judge of the judicial administrative district, a court commissioner ... may issue summonses, arrest or search warrants, conduct initial appearances of persons arrested and set bail. Full-time court commissioners may conduct preliminary examinations and arraignments and, with the consent of both the state and the defendant, may accept guilty pleas. Subsection 1 of sec. 757.69 provides commissioners with similar authority over preliminary matters in other areas of law, such as traffic cases, county ordinance cases, small claims cases, family law cases, cases involving petitions for commitment and juvenile cases. 4 Subsection 2 of sec. 757.69 provides that judges may refer limited factual and legal issues to court commissioners. Subsection 3 states that court commissioners may, under their own authority, ... issue subpoenas and attachments or other process to compel the attendance of witnesses, administer oaths and affidavits, take depositions and testimony when authorized by law or rule or order, ... certify and report the depositions and testimony, issue writs of habeas corpus, certiorari and alternative writs of mandamus that are returnable before a judge, investigate and dispose of unclaimed property, conduct paternity proceedings in some situations, and conduct supplementary hearings on the present financial status of a debtor. Wis. Stat. sec. 757.69(3). 5