Menominee County moves to add assistant prosecutor for court workload

Menominee County is moving to add an assistant prosecutor as the district attorney’s office faces the daily grind of court appearances, plea negotiations, victim communication and the paper work that keeps criminal cases moving through Keshena.

The staffing push matters because one more attorney can change how fast local charges move through the system. In a small county courthouse, a single prosecutor often has to cover misdemeanor and felony cases, juvenile matters, traffic violations and ordinance complaints while also coordinating with law enforcement and keeping up with deadlines. That is the pressure point local officials appear to be addressing.

Menominee County’s courthouse and county board operations are centered at W3269 Courthouse Lane in Keshena, where board materials list the board room as a regular meeting site. County board agendas, minutes and department information are posted publicly, and the county’s annual reports show courthouse operations continuing through the COVID era and beyond, a reminder that limited staffing can slow basic government functions as well as criminal cases.

The local move also fits a wider Wisconsin problem. Wisconsin Public Radio reported that district attorney offices across the state are struggling to hire prosecutors, with shortages described as ranging from “serious” to “dire.” That coverage said lawmakers have considered adding prosecutors district by district, a sign that the staffing gap is not limited to one county.

State budget proposals have pointed in the same direction. Gov. Tony Evers’ 2023 budget proposal would have raised the minimum hourly pay for assistant and deputy district attorneys from $27.24 to $35, while minimum annual salaries would have increased from $56,659 to $72,800. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau’s 2025-27 budget paper, titled “Additional GPR Prosecutor and Converted Positions (District Attorneys),” shows the issue remains active in Madison as counties continue to absorb the pressure.

For Menominee County, the practical effect of one more assistant prosecutor would be felt in the courthouse first: fewer cases waiting for attention, more consistent communication with victims, and less chance that a hearing, deadline or plea discussion gets pushed back because one office is stretched too thin. In a county that serves both reservation and non-reservation communities, the pace of the prosecutor’s office reaches far beyond one desk in Keshena.