Iola Sand Mine judge assignment gets bounced around
By Greg Ambrosius
Our appeal against the Faulks Bros sand mine permit took a wild turn this week.
As we reported last week, the lawyers for Waupaca County and the Waupaca County Planning and Zoning Committee filed a Motion to Dismiss our appeal in Waupaca County Circuit Court. The motion was assigned to Waupaca County Judge Troy Nielsen and an April 22 hearing was set up.
But Judge Nielsen was immediately taken off the case. We aren’t sure if he recused himself or not, but it was then assigned to Outagamie County Judge Carrie Schneider.
We thought Judge Schneider would hear the case, but instead her job was to reassign the case and on Friday, March 15, she chose Waupaca County Judge Vicki Clussman.
On Monday morning, March 18, the lawyers for the County and the Committee filed a request to substitute Judge Clussman as each side does have one “freebie” substitute if they’d like. The case then fell to Judge Raymond Huber, the last remaining Waupaca County Judge available to hear this case.
So why would the County immediately ask for this hearing to be moved from Judge Clussman to Judge Huber? If the facts and the law are on their side, why would they quickly ask for Judge Clussman to be replaced by Judge Huber?
It’s kind of telling on the County’s part and I hate to say telling of their views on the two remaining Waupaca County judges. Again, shouldn’t the facts and law carry their case no matter which judge hears it?
We have the right to also ask for a substitute judge. Should we use it? Should we now ask for the third and last judge in Waupaca County to be substituted? It would then possibly go to a reserve judge or most likely to another county, which at this point seems like the fairest thing to do seeing how the county’s lawyers didn’t even want one of the Waupaca County judges to hear this case.
Stay tuned. We will make the next decision and a hearing date will be made once everyone knows who is going to hear this case and where the case is going to be heard. I told you it was pretty wild.
Just so you know, the stay on the sand mine permit remains while the appeal is in place.