County sought to remove clerk of courts before resignation

Before former Trempealeau County Clerk of Courts Kari Tidquist resigned, the Trempealeau County Board of Supervisors attempted to have her removed from office.

According to records received by the Times — the result of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request — the charges against Tidquist came after an investigation conducted on behalf of the county by a special counsel. The charges to remove Tidquist from office were not filed in court because she resigned upon being presented with a copy of the allegations. Had they been filed, the charges would’ve been presented before Trempealeau County Circuit Court Judge Rian Radtke and a hearing — in which both the county and Tidquist could present their cases — would’ve been held.

Tidquist’s attorney, Jaclyn Kallie, indicated she may seek legal action against the county. In a letter included with the public records request, Kallie wrote the charges were “lacking in evidentiary support and replete with hearsay and comments made by unidentified declarants on ‘information and belief.’” 

“Ms. Tidquist worked diligently to fulfill her duties as Clerk of Court and was honored to serve in that position that the citizens of Trempealeau County elected her to perform,” the letter reads. “Ms. Tidquist believes that efforts to remove her from office date back years, before her taking office, and reflect an offense against our democratic system. Ms. Tidquist further believes that the process undertaken by the county, including the process forced upon the county board, was done incorrectly and perhaps illegally. Ms. Tidquist intends to continue to investigate the course of conduct to uncover the truth and pursue her rights.”

The county presented 139 accusations against Tidquist alleging she made discriminatory statements, mistreated staff, mishandled records, discussed personal matters in the office, and failed to perform the duties of the office of Clerk of Circuit Court at a level of competence and professionalism that a reasonable person would expect from a public officer.

“To be clear, Ms. Tidquist categorically denies making any discriminatory statements or otherwise engaging in discriminatory conduct,” Kallie wrote. “Ms. Tidquist further denies any allegations related to mishandling records or confidential information, altering records or mistreating staff. These verified charges reflect a continued effort to tarnish Ms. Tidquist’s name.”

Tidquist was elected on Nov. 8, 2022, after defeating Mary Lee, Derek Winkler and Rob Grover in the Republican primary. Tidquist again defeated Lee in the general election, with Lee running as a write-in candidate. Lee was sworn in to replace Tidquist after her October resignation.

Kallie presented an e-mail exchange between Lee and county Republican Party chair John Kimmel which Kallie indicated was evidence that Lee was attempting to orchestrate a recall election even before Tidquist was officially elected. 

While Kallie referred to the attempt to remove Tidquist from office as “an offense against our democratic system” a statement issued by the county — to be attributed to County Chair John Aasen and Supervisor Kellen Nelson — said “State law expressly provides for a removal process for all elected officers if it is determined by the appropriate decisionmaker that cause exists for removal. Here, the county board believed that cause existed for the removal of Ms. Tidquist from her position and authorized us to present the verified charges to the appropriate decision-maker…. (Ms. Tidquist) chose to resign, rather than proceed to hearing, but the process the county was pursuing here is one that our democratic system expressly recognizes.”

The county alleged that four of the five deputy clerks working in the Clerk of Courts office at the time of the investigation indicated they wished to leave the office due to Tidquist’s conduct. Included in the documentation sent to the Times were complaints filed by deputies, whose names were redacted. 

Also included were 140 instances in which either the District Attorney’s Office or Child Support Office had determined that Tidquist’s office had either incorrectly handled cases, did not work in a timely fashion, did not enter cases at all, or committed “other errors.” Among those was an allegation that the name of the petitioner in a domestic abuse order was listed on the Wisconsin Circuit Court Access page. The name was supposed to be confidential, according to the documentation. 

A Performance Improvement Plan was signed by both Tidquist and Trempealeau County Administrator Rebecca Glewen on March 12. In “mid-2024” the county personnel/bargaining committee engaged a special counsel to “investigate the functioning and operations of the Clerk of Courts Office.” 

On Oct. 16, the full county board authorized an investigation of allegations that Tidquist had violated the county’s harassment policy. Five days later, the county board voted to authorize the filing of charges seeking Tidquist’s removal as clerk of courts. Tidquist resigned on Oct. 29 and Lee was appointed as her replacement on Nov. 4 and will serve the remainder of the term, which expires Jan. 3, 2027. 

The Times made a FOIA request for any complaints made against Tidquist on Nov. 4 of last year and received a response last Tuesday. Including the cover letter, the response included 152 pages of documents, 148 consisted of verified charges with supporting documentation, and three were Tidquist’s augmentation to the records.