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Gary Sherman
Gary E. Sherman was a judge on the Wisconsin Court of Appeals District IV. He was appointed by Democratic Governor Jim Doyle effective May 10, 2010.[1][2][3][4] Sherman retired on July 4, 2019.[5] He would have next been up for election in 2020.
Education
Sherman received his B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1970 and his J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1973.[4]
Military service
Sherman was a member of the United States Air Force. He served as legal counsel.
Career
- 2010-2019: Judge, Wisconsin Court of Appeals District IV
- 1998-2010: Democratic Member, Wisconsin State Assembly, 74th District
- 1990-2010: Attorney in private practice[4]
Wisconsin State Assembly
Sponsored legislation
Legislation sponsored in 2009 includes:[6]
- AB-59 Bicycle and EPAMD requirements eliminated re distance from a parked vehicle and audible signal when passing; opening door of a motor vehicle on a highway without checking traffic first prohibited
- AB-295 Lodging establishment may permit smoking in certain guest rooms
- AB-344 Ferry operation after hours to transport arrested person: fee to reimburse law enforcement agency created
Campaign finance summary
Ballotpedia currently provides campaign finance data for all federal- and state-level candidates from 2020 and later. We are continuously working to expand our data to include prior elections. That information will be published here as we acquire it. If you would like to help us provide this data, please consider donating to Ballotpedia.
Awards and associations
- 1975-1999: Chief, Port Wing Fire Department
- 1994-1995: President, Wisconsin Bar Association
- Member, American Law Institute
- Member, Post 531- American Legion
- Member, Post 1998 - American Veterans
- Member, Democratic Party of Wisconsin
- Member, Group Insurance Board
- Member, Port Wing Baseball Club
- Member, Red Cliff Bar
- Member, Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers[7]
Elections
2014
See also: Wisconsin judicial elections, 2014
Sherman ran for re-election to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals District IV.
General: He won without opposition in the general election on April 1, 2014.
[8]
Noteworthy cases
Judge rules student's vulgar YouTube video protected
- See also: Wisconsin Court of Appeals District IV
Fourth District Court of Appeals Judge Gary Sherman ruled on November 27 that a vulgar YouTube video posted by a 15-year-old student is protected under the First Amendment as free speech.[9] His judgment partly affirms and partly overturns an earlier ruling made at the trial level. The student, identified by court documents as “Kaleb K.” posted the defamatory video about his Spanish teacher at Stevens Point Area High School.[9]
In September 2012, Judge Thomas Flugaur of the Portage County Circuit Court found Kaleb delinquent for disorderly conduct and breaking Wisconsin’s law against abusing a computer communications system.[9][10] The law prohibits the sending of messages meant to “frighten, intimidate or abuse another person with the expectation the target will receive the message."[11] Flugaur stated that the video was one of the most obscene and hate-filled things he’s ever seen.[9] The boy’s attorney, public defender Eileen Hirsch argued that the video was protected under the First Amendment. Hirsch also argued that posting it on YouTube did not constitute sending a message because the boy took measures to ensure his teacher wouldn't see it by telling his friends to keep the video “on the down low and stuff.”[10]
In the appeal, handled for the state by Portage County District Attorney Veronica Fay Isherwood, Judge Gary Sherman overturned the original judgment by ruling that the First Amendment did protect the video.[11] He noted that in the trial court, prosecutors failed to raise the argument that the video was not protected speech due to it's defamatory nature. Therefore, the same argument was invalidated at the appellate level.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name cannot be a simple integer. Use a descriptive title Sherman upheld the original ruling in part by rejecting the boy’s claim that posting a YouTube video does not amount to sending a message. Kaleb had testified at the trial level that his intent in posting his videos to YouTube was “to get lucky and get a bunch of views on a video or something.”[12] Kaleb had used his YouTube username on a project for the teacher who was the subject of the video, told people about the video and posted it on a public forum.[12] Because of this, Sherman concluded that the arguments that Kaleb had taken measures to ensure the teacher did not see the video were without merit.
In light of Sherman’s verdict, Hirsch questioned how the court could issue a split ruling, arguing the boy can’t be prosecuted if the video is protected speech. She stated that she hasn't spoken with the boy about taking further action with the case.[10]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Wisconsin Court of Appeals Gary Sherman. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Associated Press, "Doyle appoints Democratic state Rep. Gary Sherman as appeals court judge," December 4, 2009 (dead link)
- ↑ Press Release, "Gov. Doyle: Appoints Gary Sherman as District IV Court of Appeals judge," December 4, 2009
- ↑ Wisconsin Court System Third Branch, "Voters elect new judges in ten counties and at the Court of Appeals," Spring, 2010
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Wisconsin Court System, "Gary E. Sherman," accessed April 7, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Law Journal, "Evers seeking applicants for two Court of Appeals vacancies," April 23, 2019
- ↑ Wisconsin Legislature, "Bills sponsored by Gary Sherman," accessed August 31, 2015
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Assemblyman Sherman," accessed August 31, 2015
- ↑ Wisconsin Government Accountability Board, "Candidates on Ballot by Election, 2014 Spring Election," January 23, 2014
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 WMTV', “Wis. court: Student's vulgar video is protected,” November 27, 2013
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Green Bay Press Gazette, “State appeals court: Student's vulgar video is protected speech,” November 27, 2013
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 WKOW News, “Wis. court: Student's vulgar video is protected,” November 27, 2013
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Court of Appeals District Four, “Appeal No. 2013AP839 page 7,” November 27, 2013
Federal courts:
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Wisconsin, Western District of Wisconsin • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Wisconsin, Western District of Wisconsin
State courts:
Wisconsin Supreme Court • Wisconsin Court of Appeals • Wisconsin Circuit Courts • Wisconsin Municipal Courts
State resources:
Courts in Wisconsin • Wisconsin judicial elections • Judicial selection in Wisconsin
