KENOSHA, Wis. — I attended the first two days of the homicide trial over the killing of Andrew Pfannkuche and his dog Jake, and I walked out thinking one thing above all else: Judge Jodi Meier is running a kangaroo court in a homicide trial that should be about justice for Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake, not courtroom politics, petty side fights, and open hostility toward District Attorney Xavier Solis.

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Andrew Pfannkuche is dead. Jake is dead. Andrew Pfannkuche’s family is sitting through this nightmare in public. Andrew Pfannkuche was stabbed to death in a brutal attack, and Jake was killed too. Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake are the center of this case, or at least they should be. Instead, what I watched felt like a courtroom where Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake were too often pushed to the side while Judge Jodi Meier and the defense seemed more interested in taking swings at Solis.

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Let me be clear about something else. The evidence in this case appears overwhelming. This is not some close call where the State is hanging on by a thread. There is blood evidence, DNA evidence, photographic evidence, weapon evidence, witness evidence, surveillance evidence, and more. The defense attorneys, Michelle Gardner and Zebulon Patek, are very kind people and capable lawyers. That is what makes this so disappointing. Watching this trial, it felt less like they were focused on defending Justin Tercek and more like it was Michelle Gardner and Zebulon Patek against Xavier Solis personally. That is not good for anybody. It is not good for the jury, it is not good for the atmosphere in the courtroom, and it is not good for Justin Tercek.

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An Ideological War in a Murder Courtroom

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What I watched did not feel like a simple prosecution versus defense case. It felt ideological.

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Judge Jodi Meier is a liberal judge. The two assistant public defenders are liberals too. Xavier Solis is a conservative. Sitting in that courtroom, it felt like Solis was not only fighting the defense team, but also fighting a judge who seemed to share the defense’s worldview and hostility toward him. At times, it felt like an ideological war playing out in a homicide trial.

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Right at the outset, each side had a legal intern who is currently in law school. Wisconsin Supreme Court rules allow law students to practice under the supervision of a licensed attorney. The defense had an intern, and so did the State. Oddly, the public defenders and their supervisor seemed deeply offended that the State had a law student seated at counsel table, even though the defense was operating under the exact same rule. They made a huge issue out of it, and Judge Meier ultimately kicked the State’s legal intern out of the courtroom. From that point on, it became very clear this trial was going to get personal.

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And this is not just about political labels for the sake of labels. Judge Meier comes across as very pro-defendant, and not in the sense of being fair-minded or evenhanded. I mean pro-defendant in the sense that she seems weak on violent crime and weak on crime generally.

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Meier is a liberal, but she was apparently able to convince Scott Walker to appoint her to the bench. She later faced her lone election against John Anthony Ward, who had been sanctioned multiple times by the Wisconsin Supreme Court for misconduct. It was an easy win for Meier, and she has not faced an opponent since.

This is a judge who, in 2020, agreed to release Brian Palmer from a state mental health commitment after he had been found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect in the attempted murder of a 54-year-old woman inside an elevator at Prairie Ridge Senior Campus. Palmer admitted to police that he believed the woman was a “target” and said he beat and choked her. Judge Meier agreed at the time that Palmer’s “release would not pose a significant risk of bodily harm.” Palmer had spent only about three years confined before being released. The victim later died. Jodi didn’t want to wait for Brian to get a pardon from Evers, so she just released him.

That is not exactly the kind of record that inspires confidence from people who believe violent offenders should be kept away from the public longer.

The Jury Selection Was Ridiculous

One of the most alarming things I saw was jury selection.

A person or two were excused because they said they could not be fair and impartial if they had to see photos of a dead body. In a homicide case, that is at least understandable. But around eight people were excused because they said they could not be fair and impartial if they had to see a photograph of a dead dog.

Look, Jake matters. Jake was clearly loved. Jake’s death matters. Pets are part of the family. But my mother always taught me that people are more important than animals, no matter the circumstance. That is not me diminishing Jake. That is me saying Andrew Pfannkuche is the human being who was murdered, and Andrew Pfannkuche’s loved ones are the ones sitting there suffering through this horror in person.

What I saw was a judge who got duped. Once enough potential jurors saw that concern over a dead dog could get them out of service, more followed suit. Judge Meier seemed to show a weakness, and people picked up on it. The result was that concern over Jake, as sad and real as that is, started overshadowing Andrew Pfannkuche himself.

Andrew Pfannkuche should be the center of this case. Jake should matter too. But Andrew Pfannkuche is the murdered man. Andrew Pfannkuche’s family is living this pain. Andrew Pfannkuche should not become secondary in his own homicide trial.

Judge Meier and the Defense Teamed Up Against Solis

The ugliest part of the first two days was the fight over police records.

The District Attorney’s Office had already given the defense the Brady and Giglio material. For readers who do not know, that is material dealing with criminal convictions, dishonesty, misconduct, or credibility problems that could affect an officer’s testimony. That is the standard disclosure. That is what is supposed to be turned over.

But that was not enough for this defense team.

They wanted NCIC records for police witnesses. NCIC is law-enforcement sensitive. It is tightly controlled. It is not some casual printout to be passed around in a courtroom like a lunch menu. Running those checks would require protected information on officers, including dates of birth and other confidential identifying data. There are also obvious concerns involving the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act and other confidentiality rules.

And yet Solis was put in the position of handing over NCIC material to the defense. That should shock anybody who understands how sensitive that information is. In my opinion, Judge Meier was ordering Solis to violate federal law, and in doing so was potentially violating federal law herself. That is not some minor courtroom housekeeping issue. That is a huge deal.

And even that was not enough for the defense. After getting the NCIC records, they wanted to take the records to lunch with them and keep going through them. Solis objected. Judge Meier did not care. That tells you a lot. The judge did not seem interested in the prosecution’s legitimate concerns. She seemed interested in siding with the defense and piling on.

That is exactly how it felt in the room. Judge Meier was teaming up with Michelle Gardner and Zebulon Patek in attacking Xavier Solis. It did not feel balanced. It did not feel neutral. It felt like three people on one side and Solis on the other.

An Unprecedented Scene in Chambers

This fight got so out of hand that, in an unprecedented move, Kenosha Police Chief Patrick Patton went into Judge Meier’s chambers. Also seen at the courthouse was Deputy Chief Brent Sagedal.

That should tell readers everything they need to know about how serious and abnormal this became.

Why would the chief and deputy chief be there? Probably because if the court is demanding NCIC-style criminal-history checks on all kinds of police witnesses, then the Police Department is suddenly being dragged into a mess involving confidential personnel information and protected identifying data for potentially hundreds of officers. Somebody has to defend the department and explain what this would require and why it is such a serious problem.

Kenosha County Eye has never heard of a judge in Kenosha County ordering this kind of disclosure in a case like this. Lawyers we consulted with had not heard of it either. This was unprecedented.

This looks like a judge who has contempt for cops. Can a judge who doesn’t trust cops be fair? Should be allowed to allegedly violate federal law with impunity?

The Defense Looked Petty and Personal

Again, I want to be fair here, because Michelle Gardner and Zebulon Patek are very kind people and capable lawyers. I like them both, very much.

But that is not how they came across in this trial.

They came across as petty. They smirked at little objections that were sustained. They made objections that felt baseless. The whole thing started to feel personal. It did not feel like laser-focused advocacy for their client. It felt like resentment toward Xavier Solis spilling into the courtroom. They actually asked the judge to fine Solis personally for not handing over federally-regulated FBI documents.

Meier said she’s considering it.

That is a problem.

I got the feeling the jury really does not like the defense. Jurors watch everything. They watch the smirks. They watch the body language. They watch the little side comments and the tone. And I do not think Justin Tercek benefits when his lawyers come across as more interested in fighting Xavier Solis than defending him.

That is the tragedy of it. These are genuinely nice people. But in this case, it seems like their disdain for Solis, a prosecutor known for being tougher on crime and not handing out generous plea deals, is becoming personal. That is not okay. And it is not helping their client. A jury that doesn’t like the defense attorneys, usually doesn’t like the defendant.

The defense kept asking for mistrials the way a child calls for mom. Even Judge Meier, despite how the proceedings were unfolding, had the common sense to recognize those requests as absurd and deny them.

Mocking Solis’ Accent Was Ugly

Other public defenders were in the courtroom too, including supervisor Kristyne Watson. And from what I observed, there was laughter and commentary directed at Solis, including mockery of his accent.

That is disgraceful.

Xavier Solis was born in Texas and is of Mexican heritage. Mocking the way he talks is not professional. It is not polite. And it is especially rich coming from people who think of themselves as liberals and champions of tolerance. If you are going to preach inclusion and respect, maybe start by not making fun of the way somebody speaks.

David Kollath, the liberal activist and state-sponsored media blogger for WGTD who also goes by the stage name David Cole, predictably rushed to social media to spread misinformation about the trial. Kollath claimed the trial day was cut short because of mistakes by Xavier Solis. That is simply not true. The day was cut short because the defense wanted criminal-history information on police witnesses, leading to the unprecedented NCIC fight and the chief being called into chambers. Kollath either did not understand what was happening in court or chose to mislead his audience. Either way, it was inaccurate.

Judge Meier’s Conduct Was a Disaster

This was the first trial I have watched in Judge Meier’s courtroom, and if this is how she handles trials, she needs a refresher course.

She screamed at Solis several times. She threatened sanctions. She seemed openly irritated with him. She did not appear evenhanded. She did not appear calm. She did not appear in control in the way a trial judge should.

Maybe she should call Judge Bruce Schroeder and get some tips, because what I watched looked like a disaster.

A homicide trial is not the place for a judge to look like she is carrying on a personal feud with the elected district attorney. It is not the place for ideological warfare. It is not the place for selective enforcement of rules, public scolding, or bizarre record fights that hijack half the day.

We get it, Jodi. You didn’t vote for Solis, you voted for your friend who lost. Tough! Get over it!

This is the homicide trial over the killing of Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake. Act like it.

No Water for Andrew Pfannkuche’s Family Was Cruel

The cruelest moment had nothing to do with the lawyers.

Andrew Pfannkuche’s family came to court carrying tumblers or Yetis with water. Judge Meier ordered the bailiff to take the water away before they could go into the courtroom.

That seemed cruel. Flat-out cruel.

Andrew Pfannkuche’s loved ones are expected to sit through seven or eight hours a day, maybe for two weeks, listening to details about Andrew Pfannkuche’s murder and Jake’s death. They are expected to sit there through graphic evidence, emotional testimony, and painful memories. And they cannot even have water.

At the same time, courtroom rules were being enforced selectively. There were signs about no cell phone use. There were signs about no electronic devices, including laptops. There were signs saying court officers were exempt. Yet bailiffs and others were openly using phones, and many non-lawyers were typing away on laptops.

So Andrew Pfannkuche’s family cannot bring in water, but others can play loose with electronics rules depending on who they are. That is not justice. That is not compassion. That is not even common sense.

Double Standards Everywhere

Judge Meier also seems to like one set of rules for other people and another for herself.

She has allowed journalists to photograph minors in her courtroom, but she does not want photographs of herself. Vain much?

There are also lingering questions about Ted Kmiec. It seemed that after the SWAT raid on his home and the discovery of drugs, Meier fired him, yet she would not speak about that. Again, one set of rules for everyone else, silence when the questions get too close to home.

For someone willing to put on such a display from the bench, she should be willing to answer hard questions too.

Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake Deserve Better

At the end of the day, this should be about Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake.

Andrew Pfannkuche is the man who lost his life. Jake is the dog who was killed. Andrew Pfannkuche’s family is sitting in that courtroom living through a nightmare no family should ever have to endure.

And what they got the first three days was not a courtroom focused cleanly on justice for Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake. What they got was a courtroom that felt political, personal, petty, and chaotic.

People can disagree with my opinion. Fine. I am a guy with an opinion and a website, and I have every right to say it.

My opinion is this: Judge Jodi Meier needs to do better. The kangaroo court shenanigans need to stop. Treat both sides the same. Follow the law. Stop making this about ideology and personal grudges. And start remembering that this homicide trial is supposed to be about justice for Andrew Pfannkuche and Jake.

Neither Jodi Meier, nor Kristyne Watson reaponded to an email inquiry asking for comment.