John Pier Roemer

John Pier Roemer
John Pier Roemer
Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the Juneau circuit, branch 1
	In office; August 1, 2004 – August 2017
Preceded by	Dennis Schuh
Succeeded by	Stacy A. Smith
Personal details
Born	August 9, 1953; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	June 3, 2022 (aged 68); New Lisbon, Wisconsin, U.S.
Cause of death	Homicide
Spouse	Vivian M. Schroeder (m. 1980; died 2018)
Children	three sons
Alma mater	Hamline University School of Law
Profession	Lawyer, judge
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	U.S. Army Reserve
Years of service	1984–2002
Rank	Lt. Colonel, USAR

John Pier "Jack" Roemer, Jr., (August 9, 1953 – June 3, 2022) was an American lawyer and judge in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. He served 13 years as Wisconsin circuit court judge for Juneau County. He was murdered five years after retiring from the court.

Biography

John Pier Roemer, Jr., was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in August 1953.[1] He attended Hamline University School of Law, in St. Paul, Minnesota, and graduated in 1983. He worked as an attorney in private practice for several years, and also worked as a public defender in Baraboo, Wisconsin. He was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army Reserve around this time and served in the Reserves until retiring as a lieutenant colonel in 2002.[2]

In 1992, he was hired as an assistant district attorney in Juneau County, Wisconsin, under district attorney Dennis Schuh. He and Schuh worked together until the death of Juneau County Wisconsin circuit court judge John W. Brady in 2003. After Brady's death, Governor Jim Doyle appointed Schuh to the vacant judgeship. With Schuh's elevation, Roemer became acting district attorney, but soon announced his own candidacy for the judgeship, challenging Schuh in the Spring 2004 election.[2]

Roemer prevailed in the election, receiving 62% of the vote.[2][3] He took office in August 2004 and was re-elected without opposition in 2010 and 2016. He retired shortly after the start of his third term, in August 2017, to spend more time with his ailing wife.[4][5]

Assassination

On June 3, 2022, Roemer was shot and killed in his home by Douglas K. Uhde. Uhde had appeared in Roemer's court in 2005 and was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison for armed burglary with a dangerous weapon.[4] After killing Roemer, Uhde shot himself, but was still alive when discovered by police. Uhde died at a nearby hospital four days later.

Uhde was described by police as a likely "grievance collector" and had a list of other targets which included Democratic Wisconsin governor Tony Evers, Democratic Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, and Republican U.S. Senate leader Mitch McConnell.[6]

Personal life and family

John Roemer married Vivian Mae Schroeder on November 20, 1980. They had three sons. His wife died in 2018.[1] Roemer was active in the St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mauston, Wisconsin.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Circuit Court (2004)

Wisconsin Circuit Court, Juneau Circuit Election, 2004[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
General Election, April 6, 2004
	Nonpartisan	John P. Roemer	3,326	61.93%
	Nonpartisan	Dennis Schuh (incumbent)	2,040	37.98%
		Scattering	5	0.09%
Plurality			1,286	23.94%
Total votes			5,371	100.0%

References

"John P. Roemer". Channel3000. June 12, 2022. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
"Election 2004" (PDF). The Third Branch. Vol. 12, no. 2. Wisconsin Court System. Spring 2004. p. 3. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
Results of Spring General Election - 04/06/2004 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. April 22, 2004. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 20, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
Planas, Antonio; Winter, Tom; Kosnar, Michael (June 5, 2022). "Slain retired judge had sentenced suspect to six years in prison, court records show". NBC News. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
Arseneau, Kelli; Mueller, Chris; Volpenhein, Sarah (June 4, 2022). "Retired Juneau County judge John Roemer killed in targeted attack remembered as devoted jurist, church leader". Wisconsin Rapids Tribune. Retrieved June 13, 2022.
Bosman, Julie (June 3, 2022). "Killing in Wisconsin Was Motivated by Judicial Matter, Attorney General Says". The New York Times. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

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[obit-1] "John P. Roemer". Channel3000. June 12, 2022. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

[third-2] "Election 2004" (PDF). The Third Branch. Vol. 12, no. 2. Wisconsin Court System. Spring 2004. p. 3. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

[2004gen-3] Results of Spring General Election - 04/06/2004 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. April 22, 2004. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 20, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

[nbc-4] Planas, Antonio; Winter, Tom; Kosnar, Michael (June 5, 2022). "Slain retired judge had sentenced suspect to six years in prison, court records show". NBC News. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

[5] Arseneau, Kelli; Mueller, Chris; Volpenhein, Sarah (June 4, 2022). "Retired Juneau County judge John Roemer killed in targeted attack remembered as devoted jurist, church leader". Wisconsin Rapids Tribune. Retrieved June 13, 2022.

[6] Bosman, Julie (June 3, 2022). "Killing in Wisconsin Was Motivated by Judicial Matter, Attorney General Says". The New York Times. Retrieved June 13, 2022.