December 2, 2024
Frederick P. Kessler died on November 12, 2024. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Judge Joan Kessler, two daughters and grandchildren. He was first elected to the Wisconsin Assembly before his 21st birthday and served as a Milwaukee County judge from 1972 to 1978, 1978 to 1981 and 1986 to 1988. In 2004, he was reelected to the Wisconsin Assembly and served until 2018.
My favorite Judge Kessler story (although not my most important – that will be told later) occurred shortly after he resigned from the bench to run unsuccessfully for congress. A trial judge, figuring that now former Judge Kessler had some free time on his hands, appointed him as standby counsel for a career criminal who insisted on representing himself on a minor burglary charge. The jury promptly convicted the defendant, but the only appropriate sentence was time served as the defendant had already been in custody for over a year and he had broken into a business probably looking for food. Since the defendant had no property with the Sheriff’s Department (or probably anywhere else in the world) after the court sentencing him to time served, he was free to go.
Judge Kessler, the defendant, the lead detective and I stepped in the hallway, where the defendant asked Judge Kessler for some money for dinner. Judge Kessler opened his wallet, gave the defendant $20 and suggested that the detective and I do likewise, which we did. We agreed that this was undoubtably the first and only time in history where the defense attorney, the prosecutor and the lead detective gave money to a defendant immediately after he’d been convicted of a felony. Yes, it was strange, but following Judge Kessler’s lead, it was the right thing to do.
The more important story occurred after being in his court a few months. I took a shot at trying a case (a court trial), even though my main witness didn’t appear. Judge Kessler dismissed after the state’s case and then called me into chambers. He told me essentially the following: “You tried the case, even though your main witness wasn’t available. Trying to convince a court of a position when you know that you don’t have the evidence can destroy your credibility as a serious lawyer. I’ll let it go this time because it’s your first time, but don’t do it again. Once your reputation is ruined, you can never get it back.”
I never did. Whenever a client would ask me to make a presentation in which either the facts or the law didn’t support the position, I would tell the client that I’d worked for years to develop a reputation as a lawyer whose arguments would always be taken seriously and I wouldn’t ruin that reputation for any client. When giving that response, I always thought of Judge Kessler.
I’ll never forget what Judge Kessler taught me, and I’ve tried to pay it forward by passing that lesson along to younger lawyers. He was an extraordinary judge and human being, and he’ll be missed.