Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate wants her proposed gun range to serve alcohol

Waukesha County Judge Jennifer Dorow and her husband are working on opening a gun range in Delafield, Wisconsin, at which they plan to host family events and serve alcohol.

Dorow is one of two conservatives running to compete in the April 2023 election for a Wisconsin state Supreme Court seat, the results of which could flip the chamber’s current 4-3 conservative majority. If Democrats win the vacant seat, the court would have a 4-3 liberal majority that could block abortion bans and overturn the state’s heavily Republican gerrymandered legislative and congressional districts.

“My husband and I actually are developing a state-of-the-art range in Waukesha County. We bought the old Hartland Sportsmen’s Club. And so that’s just a little project that we have going on,” Dorow said in audio recorded in January at a meeting of the Republican Women of Southeast Wisconsin and obtained by Jezebel.

According to a petition Dorow’s husband, Brian, filed with the City of Delafield Plan Commission, the range would have 22 firing lanes and would sell guns and host safety training classes. In addition, the petition says, the Dorows are

also proposing an event space that will host weddings, conventions, and high-end meetings. … The applicant is proposing to offer food service via food trucks, catering services, and grab and go selections. The applicant is also requesting a Class B liquor license for beer and wine sales. Outdoor activities may include holiday events (easter egg hunts, Halloween fun nights), special events with temporary tents, Boy Scout badge events, hiking, outdoor movie nights (2-4 times a year), live music events (4-6 times a year), and neighborhood gatherings (2-4 times a year).

Presenting the proposal for the range at a planning meeting in July 2021, Brian Dorow addressed concerns about serving alcohol at a gun range: “Clearly, there’s a separation. You’re not having a glass of wine and shooting. You’re clearly done for the day, your gun and ammunition is in the vehicle, and you come and have a social drink or two.”

The safety policy the Dorows have proposed reads: “Members/guests will receive an ink handstamp prior to purchasing or consuming alcohol and anyone with a handstamp will not permitted to use the ranges, preliminary breath testers will be available to test suspicious individuals, and members/guests will be required to secure their firearms in their vehicles prior to obtaining any alcohol.”

Jennifer Dorow’s opponents in the nonpartisan Feb. 21 primary include fellow Republican and former state Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly, who lost reelection in 2020 to Democrat Jill Karofsky.

Dorow, for her part, asked in 2016 to state what she felt was the worst ruling by the Wisconsin or U.S. Supreme Court, cited Lawrence v. Texas, which overturned a Texas law that banned sexual acts between two people of the same sex. Dorow said it was

a prime example of judicial activism at its worst. In Lawrence, a majority of the court went well beyond the four corners of the U.S. Constitution to declare a new constitutional right. The decision cites to the European Convention on Human Rights and an advisory committee to the British Parliament as legal justification for establishing the right to extramarital sexual acts – a right found no where in the text of the U.S. Constitution. This decision was then used by the Massachusetts Supreme Court as legal justification in mandating the issuance of same sex marriage licenses under the Massachusetts Constitution.

Also running for the Supreme Court seat are two liberal Democrats, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz and Dane County Circuit Judge Everett Mitchell.

Both Protasiewicz and Mitchell support protecting abortion rights.

The Feb. 21 primary will winnow the field down to two candidates. Those two candidates will face off in the general election on April 4.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.