JEFFERSON — William V. Gruber donned his robes as Jefferson County Circuit Court Branch I judge during his investiture ceremony Friday afternoon at the Jefferson County Courthouse.
Governor Scott Walker appointed Gruber in June to fulfill the term of Judge Jennifer L. Weston, who retired on July 10. Gruber’s position will be on the April 2019 ballot.
Gruber has been Watertown city attorney for the past five-and-a-half years after serving as Dodge County assistant corporation counsel for two years. He also was an intern in the Waukesha County District Attorney’s Office in 2001 and two years as a law clerk to Waukesha County Judge Robert G. Mawdsley. He earned his law degree in 2001 from Marquette University.
The Branch I court room was filled to capacity with family members, friends, colleagues and 12 guest members of the judiciary — including two Wisconsin Supreme Court Justices — along with Jefferson County Circuit Judges William F. Hue, Branch II; Robert Dehring, Branch III; and Bennett J. Brantmeier, Branch IV.Hue served as the master of ceremonies, introducing guests after an invocation given by the Rev. Peter Auer of Fort Atkinson’s St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.
Members of the judiciary in attendance included Wisconsin Chief Supreme Court Justices Pat Roggansack and Daniel Kelly; Court of Appeals Judges JoAnne Kloppenburg, Brian Blanchard, Brian K. Hagedorn and Michael R. Fitzpatrick; Waukesha County Judge and Chief Judge of the 3rd Administrative Judicial District Jennifer Dorow; Waukesha County Circuit Judges Patrick C. Haughney, Paul Bugenhagen Jr., Maria S. Lazar, Ralph M. Ramirez and Laura Lau; and retired Jefferson County Judges John M. Ullsvik and David Wambach.
Other local dignitaries included state Sen. Steve Nass; state Rep. Cory Horlacher; Jefferson County Clerk of Courts Carla Robinson; Jefferson County Sheriff Paul S. Milbrath; Jefferson County Administrator Ben Wehmeier; and Jefferson County Supervisor Augie Tietz.
Speaking prior to Gruber’s oath were Dorow; attorney, retired pastor and former Watertown alderperson Frederick H. Smith; Watertown Police Chief Timothy J. Roets; Justice Kelly; and Dehring, who also administered Gruber’s oath of office.
Dorow welcomed Gruber “to the brotherhood and sisterhood of the judiciary.
“An investiture is the public and formal commencement of a judicial career,” she said. “It is a day in which we honor and celebrate Judge Gruber’s installation as a jurist. It is a day to recognize a career goal come to fruition. To me, it is not a career, though, it is a calling.
“Fairness and impartiality must guide our every decision, no matter how trying the litigant or the attorney can be,” Dorow added.
She cited the Book of Micah 6:8, which states: “He has shown you, oh man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Smith followed continued the theme from the Book of Micah, but also said that Gruber “was one of the hardest working individuals I have ever known,” regarding his duties as Watertown city attorney.
“He has intellect, but it is also more than that,” Smith said. “He takes that intellect and uses it to produce true wisdom. He will need that in performing his duties as judge. It was amazing to me how Will could take the most complex issue in the city, write a legal memo that was concise and cogent and sufficiently understandable so everyone in a decision capacity who read it just knew that it was the right course to take. Over the course of time, we trusted him more and more, and we saw the type of decision-making that would serve the people of Watertown well.”
He said that Micah 6:8 perfectly described Gruber.
“As was just mentioned, three simple things — to act justly, love mercy and to walk humbly with your God,” he said. “That verse describes the essence of what is so important for any judge. It is also a perfect description of William Gruber.”
Smith concluded by saying he will miss Gruber in Watertown, but understands he has a higher calling now.
“I cannot imagine a better person to have been picked to serve a county he cares for so much,” Smith said of Gruber.
Roets spoke next, joking he would quote the late Justice Thurgood Marshall instead of the Old Testament.
Roets said Gruber had developed the skills that would make him a fine judge.
“He was Watertown’s first full-time city attorney, a role that previously was performed by a local law firm that had three attorneys,” he said. “We challenged Gruber on an annual basis with over 2,000 traffic citations, 170 OWI arrest, 800 ordinance arrests, and hundreds and hundreds of snow emergency tickets which kept his pre-trial calendar perpetually filled.”
The police chief also lauded Gruber on his solution to a pit bull situation in Watertown “in which he had support from all parties involved.
“He was comfortable with his vast responsibilities and demonstrated a personal standard of ethical conduct that stood out among all departments,” Roets continued. “He increased the level of professionalism in all our departments, and he will have long-lasting, positive effects in the city and for that, we are thankful. Thurgood Marshall said it best — ‘mere access to the courthouse doors does not by itself assure a proper functioning of the adversary process.’ It takes judges of character like we are fortunate to have serving in Jefferson County, which will now include Judge Gruber.”
Justice Kelly focused on the role of judges as servants.
“The reason this is important is because upon accepting this appointment, he literally became a servant,” Kelly said of Gruber. “Not in a congratulatory sense in which some people use the term with public servants. I mean real servants — one who understands his position is inferior to the one that has retained him; he does it with glad and cheerful heart. One who understand that the latitude of his actions are defined and limited by the people from whom he borrows his authority.”
Kelly then elaborated on his theme by asking “who does a judge serve?”
“Governor Walker appointed William Gruber, but he is not the governor’s servant,” he said. “His decisions will be subject to review by the Supreme Court, but he is not our servant. So whose servant is he?”
The justice then shared a story in which he was speaking to elementary students, and a child asked Kelly “who is your boss?”
“I said, ‘your parents are my boss.’ Then I turned to the rest of the students and said all of their parents were my boss, too, Kelly recalled. “ I asked the student how old he was. He said 12, and I told him that in six years, he, too, would be my boss.
“That is not just a sentiment,” he said. “The government has no authority of its own. It first must borrow authority from you. It is only with your consent that the government can exercise any authority at all. Whose servant is Will? He is your servant. He may exercise the authority you chose to give him.”
Kelly elaborated on the role of the judiciary and its relationship to the other two branches of government, the separation of powers and the role of the judicial branch. He concluded by noting that Gruber “will be bringing nothing but good judgment to the bench. I know the security of your liberties is in good hands.”
Dehring also said a few words just before he administered Gruber’s oath of office.
“Since his appointment, Will has been working diligently to get up to speed in order to hit the ground running as judge,” Dehring said. “He has already shown keen insights to the law, and I know that because he asks the right questions. I am supremely confident we will be a good team here. We know he will take his oath seriously and will administer justice fairly guided by the rule of law.”
The oath was then given to Gruber. His wife, Annie, held the Bible, and his parents, John and Diane Gruber, were present, as well.
Attorney Danielle Thompson, president of the Jefferson County Bar Association, presented Gruber with his first judicial robe. It was then placed on him by his wife.
Judge Brantmeier presented a gift from the other three branch judges; two wooden plaques of the Jefferson County and Wisconsin State seals engraved on them to hang in his courtroom.
Gruber then made comments of his own, joking that he lacked the “eloquence in oratory of our previous speakers.”
After thanking everyone for their support “in my professional and personal life that made this day a reality,” the new judge said that he lacked the words to describe “how honored and humbled” he was to be appointed judge. He also specifically thanked his family members.
“You heard today from people I deeply respect personally and professionally and whom I tend to model in some way,” Gruber said. “The speakers today have spoken forcefully on those principals corresponding to the rule of law, foremostly, Justice Kelly, who spoke on the proper role of the judiciary. I think that is a function that is sometimes forgotten.
“I can assure you, in short, that as a judge, these will be my strictures, nothing more, nothing less,” Gruber said. “I must, and I will, apply the law as established by the Legislature (and) the Wisconsin and the United States Constitutions to the facts or ensure juries rightly called as consciousness of our communities do as such.”
Gruber quoted U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who noted that judges are umpires: “They call the balls and strikes; they do not pitch or hit.”
“People do not go to the ballgame to watch the umpire,” he added.
“I will prioritize patience, active listening and civility in and out of the courtroom,” Gruber concluded. “I ensure you that I will apply these expectations most harshly on myself.”
A reception for family, friends and guests was held after the investiture at The Woolen Mills in Jefferson.