2011: Wis Judge Kluka's lifetime achievement award from state bar [John Doe subpoena queen]

Feb 9, 2011: KENOSHA — Retired Kenosha County Circuit Judge Barbara Kluka had no idea that local judges and lawyers had nominated her for a lifetime achievement award.

So, when she got the call this week that she was getting the State Bar of Wisconsin’s highest honor, she was more than surprised.

“I am thrilled. I am honored. I am elated,” Kluka said today. She will receive the award during a ceremony in June.

The Kenosha County Bar Association nominated Kluka, said Patrick Anderson, a local prosecutor and president of the organization.

The news might have been a shock for Kluka, but Kenosha County Circuit Court Chief Judge Mary Wagner said the local support for Kluka’s nomination should come as no surprise.

“I was very happy, on behalf of the judges, to participate in her recommendation,” Wagner said. “We are really proud that they recognized her talents and achievements.”

After working as a high school teacher and a lawyer, Kluka was elected judge in 1989, becoming the first woman judge in Kenosha County. After 22 years on the bench, including six years as Kenosha County’s chief judge, Kluka retired in August.

Charles Bennett, manager of the State Public Defender office in Kenosha, told the bar association he admired Kluka’s patience and willingness to guide new attorneys.

Kluka served on several state judicial committees and was an instructor for Criminal Trial Practice: Shanghai and Xian, China, in 1997. She also sponsored and mentored college students interested in law-related careers for University of Wisconsin-Parkside and Carthage College, and she taught at the National Judicial College in Reno, Nev.

In the community, Kluka served on the Gateway College Court and Conference Advisory Committee, St. Joseph High School Board of Trustees, Southeast Wisconsin Boy Scout Advisory Council and as a lector and Eucharistic minister at St. Anthony’s Church.

Even today, Wagner said, Kluka keeps one foot in the court, taking the bench several times a month filling in for other judges. She also participates in a mediation program in Kenosha County.

“We’re grateful that even though she retired from her everyday job, she’s still doing a big service to the state and Kenosha County,” Wagner said. “Her work is not done. We intend to keep calling on her when we need her.”

..“Her work is not done. We intend to keep calling on her when we need her.”

And they did.

Teachers, lawyers......Number One and Two Democratic Party money and muscle organizations.

April 23, 2015: Nets Skip Wisconsin Police Raids Against Conservatives "....DAVID FRENCH.... "Phase one [of Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm's John Doe investigation] began with an actual criminal complaint then it was expanded 18 separate times until at the end of it they were investigating literally constitutionally protected issue advocacy and they were using the facts that people had spoken freely, supporting conservative causes as sufficient evidence to get these subpoenas and the search warrants and to come –

KELLY: Who was the judge that signed up on these subpoenas?

..............."DAVID FRENCH: The judges' name Barbara Kluka, I believe that's how you pronounce her name.And she did, she signed off of hundreds of pages worth of subpoenas in literally one afternoon worth of work. It was a rubberstamp process, it was not true judicial oversight and the result has been catastrophic for citizen's rights."

November 19, 2013: Retired [Peterson] Eau Claire judge to oversee John Doe investigation Former state Appeals Court Judge Gregory A. Peterson has been named as the new presiding judge in the secret criminal investigation into campaign fundraising and spending during the recall elections.....It was not known whether he is a political conservative or liberal. Peterson confirmed that he did not sign any of the recall petitions.

Peterson replaces retired Kenosha County Circuit Judge Barbara Kluka, who recused herself from overseeing the John Doe probe last month. She has not explained why she exited the case....."

- Oct 30, 2013 - KENOSHA, Wis. — A hearing this week that might have kicked off a new phase in a super-secret political investigation led by Democrats targeting conservatives was postponed indefinitely after the presiding judge recused herself from the case, Wisconsin Reporter has learned.

A source close to the investigation tells Wisconsin Reporter that retired Kenosha County Circuit Judge Barbara A. Kluka has stepped aside, throwing off the proceedings, scheduled for Tuesday.

“There was no hearing because there’s no judge,” said the source, who spoke in return for a guarantee of anonymity.

The insider said attorneys in the case learned “over the past few days” the Tuesday deadline for appearing before the judge had been postponed.

One source said subpoenas issued in the case required responses “in person or in writing” from “about 100 people.”

Wisconsin Reporter contacted Kluka at her Kenosha home Wednesday. She said she could not comment.

“I cannot tell you anything. There is a secrecy order and I will abide by it.”.....

Oct 30, 2013:EXCLUSIVE: Judge in Democrat-led John Doe probe recuses herself...Like a grand jury, John Doe investigations give prosecutors subpoena and search powers, as well as the ability to call oath-bound witnesses to testify. And it’s all conducted in secret. The investigation draws its name from the unnamed people involved, and is intended to be an independent, investigative tool to determine whether a crime has been committed — and if so, by whom.

John Does come with strict penalties for those who violate the terms of the secret proceedings.

As revealed by Wisconsin Reporter Monday, the secret investigation launched by the Democrat-led Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office in early 2012 is trained on national conservative organizations, including Americans for Prosperity, Club for Growth and the Republican Governors Association. Multiple sources, who asked to remain anonymous due to their proximity to the probe or the people in it, corroborated that story.

One source with knowledge of the investigation said the groups have received — or have been told they’ll receive — subpoenas issued under the state’s so-called John Doe law.

Though gagged by provisions of subpoenas issued by Milwaukee County Assistant District Attorney Bruce Landgraf and others, multiple sources told Wisconsin Reporter the manifold legal attack on nonprofit political organizations has included after-hours visits to homes and offices; confiscated equipment and files; and demands for phone, email and other records.

“This is a taxpayer-funded, opposition-research campaign,” one source said. “This is not a question of what conservatives did wrong. It’s a question of one party in this state using prosecutorial powers to conduct a one-sided investigation into conservatives.”...

April 20, 2015 - David French, NRO: Wisconsin's Shame 'I thought it was a home invasion "................As I finished an interview with one victim still living in fear, still shattered by the experience of nearly losing everything simply because she supported the wrong candidate at the wrong time, I asked whether she had any final thoughts. “Just one,” she replied. “I’m hoping for accountability, that someone will be held responsible so that they’ll never do this again.” She paused for a moment and then, with voice trembling, said: “No one should ever endure what my family endured.”

Who learned what from whom?

"Kluka served on several state judicial committees and was an instructor for Criminal Trial Practice: Shanghai and Xian, China, in 1997."

April 19, 2001: HRIC - Human Rights in China: Empty Promises: Human Rights Protections & China's Criminal Procedure Law in Practice

[snip]

The Role of Lawyers

More than four years have now passed since the revised Criminal Procedure Law (CPL) entered into force in January 1997. While these revisions have been praised both inside China and internationally for making certain improvements to the human rights protections available to suspects and defendants caught up in China’s criminal justice system, the practical impact of these reforms has been called into question by the reality on the ground.

Chinese authorities appear unwilling to allow the limited safeguards in the revised CPL significantly to protect rights in practice. They have also refused to act, whether through enacting legislation or administrative rules, to remedy deficiencies in areas where further reforms are very evidently needed. CPL provisions aimed at safeguarding rights have been either watered down in interpretation or violated outright without the authors of the violations suffering any consequences. Loopholes and ambiguities in the CPL have been exploited to the full by law implementation authorities. In certain areas, the new CPL has actually resulted in greater limitations of key rights. This is particularly so as regards the involvement of lawyers in criminal cases." [snip]

Sisters of St. Francis School: Barbara Kluka

"Barbara Kluka is a long-time associate who was born, raised, and has lived most of her life near Kenosha, Wisconsin. As a single person, she has pursued a life of quiet holiness since childhood, when she learned to play the organ and played at daily Masses and for funerals in her parish.

Barbara attended St. Joseph High School in Kenosha, where she became acquainted with the School Sisters of St. Francis community. Sister Ruth La Mothe was one of her teachers. She introduced Barbara to others sisters and brought her to the Motherhouse many times for celebrations and liturgies. (It was Sister Ruth who later invited Barbara to become an associate, and continues to serve as her contact sister.) Strong ties began to develop as Barbara continued on as a student at Alverno College. After graduation, Barbara went back to St. Joseph High School and taught there for seven years.

Barbara went on to law school and worked for many years in the Wisconsin judicial system, serving as a circuit court judge for 22 years before retiring. This ministry was very fulfilling, and she jokingly said she enjoyed being called “your honor,” but her sister helped her keep things in perspective as only family can, telling her “You’re not all that important.”

Now that she is retired, Barbara is available to go where she can be of service in many areas, such as occasionally filling in as court commissioner or doing private mediations. She teaches occasional classes in Business Law at an area college, and attends meetings and events with the sisters at St. Joseph Center in Milwaukee. She was one of 10 laypeople invited to give testimony in support of the community during the recent Apostolic Visitation, and she serves on the Community Ascending Team.

Barbara finds fulfillment in her service as a Eucharistic Minister to the sick in the hospital, knowing that she is a support to someone in such a vulnerable situation. She finds that visiting and praying with patients brings her joy and peace.

Barbara is encouraged in her spiritual growth by reading the lives of the saints from Magnificat magazine and enjoys reading Joan Chittister’s Monastic Way and Richard Rohr’s daily online meditation. She was greatly influenced by her classes with Father Raymond Parr at Alverno, and said she has matured in her prayer life and spirituality since Vatican II.

Barbara considers herself a very optimistic person. She prefers to take the long view and wait until things become clear or work out naturally, noting that the Church has been around for a long time and has come through some extremely difficult situations. Her greatest cause for optimism is that the present economic situation has given people an opportunity to examine what is really important in their lives. She hopes this examination will strengthen family life and improve the care of children.

Barbara said she will continue to be an associate because she relishes every opportunity to hear God’s word in celebrations with the sisters. She said being with the community is a concrete way for her to glimpse the Kingdom of God."

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