Jessica Fehrenbach

Professional career

• Sworn in on August 1, 2025 and formally invested on September 12, 2025, in a ceremony featuring retired Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Ann Walsh Bradley

Education

Additional information

• Merrill native Jessica Fehrenbach was elected in April 2025 without opposition to succeed retiring Judge Robert Russell.
• The first woman to hold a judicial seat in Lincoln County, a district that voted for President Trump by over 60% in 2024.
• Fehrenbach has publicly stated her intent to prioritize alternatives to criminal prosecution and to implement programs such as mediation and family treatment courts.
• She has emphasized her “unique and diverse background” and commitment to reforming the system from within.
• The case has become a focal point in debates over criminal justice reform in Wisconsin, especially given Fehrenbach’s liberal judicial philosophy in a conservative county.
• Before becoming a judge, she spent 14 years as a public defender and has described herself as a wife, mother, and active community volunteer, serving on nonprofit boards and in local PTOs.