KENOSHA, Wis. — Several weeks ago, Kenosha County’s circuit court judges selected attorney Daniel E. Kellum as the county’s new Judicial Court Commissioner. Kenosha County Eye has now had the opportunity to observe Kellum on the bench for several weeks, and what we’ve seen so far is concerning. Kellum appears to be developing a pattern of extremely low cash bails and no-cash bail for defendants accused of serious crimes. Based on his performance thus far, KCE gives Kellum a grade of C-minus.

That grade doesn’t mean we’re writing Kellum off. Far from it. He’s new to the job, and as KCE reported when his appointment was announced, his professional background appeared to contain little, if any, criminal law experience. He came to the bench with substantial civil litigation experience and was inevitably going to face a learning curve when suddenly tasked with making consequential decisions in criminal cases every day.

But a learning curve can only explain so much.

Kellum presides over Intake Court, where he makes decisions about bail and conditions of release for defendants shortly after they are charged. He also conducts preliminary hearings, hears restraining order matters and fills in for judges in family court, small claims and other proceedings when needed. His bail decisions are among the most consequential things he does because they can determine whether someone accused of a serious crime remains behind bars or immediately returns to the community.

During our observations, Kellum has repeatedly imposed what KCE considers remarkably low bail — and, in many cases, no-cash bail — even when defendants face serious allegations. We have seen him give what appears to be insufficient weight to alleged violence, threats against law enforcement and the potential danger defendants may pose to the public.

That is particularly troubling in light of what Wisconsin voters said about bail just three years ago.

In April 2023, Wisconsin voters overwhelmingly approved two amendments to the Wisconsin Constitution dealing specifically with pretrial release and bail. The first expanded courts’ authority to impose release conditions designed to protect members of the community from “serious harm.” The second expanded the circumstances courts may consider when imposing cash bail on defendants accused of violent crimes, including prior violent-crime convictions, the likelihood of failing to appear, protecting the community from serious harm, preventing witness intimidation and potential affirmative defenses.

Those amendments matter. Protecting the public isn’t some fringe consideration that KCE invented because we cover crime aggressively. Wisconsin voters amended their own state constitution to give courts greater authority to consider public protection when making these decisions.

From what we’ve observed so far, Kellum doesn’t appear to be making enough use of that authority.

There is, however, something KCE cannot determine from watching court proceedings: Who is actually responsible for the philosophy we’re seeing from the bench?

Under Wisconsin law, Kellum has substantial authority to make these decisions himself. But KCE does not know whether Kellum is exercising that authority completely independently or whether Judge Chad Kerkman, the self-proclaimed presiding judge of the Kenosha County Circuit Court who holds the honorary title of deputy chief judge, is giving Kellum specific instructions or expectations concerning bail.

That distinction matters.

If Kellum is independently deciding that defendants accused of serious and violent crimes should routinely receive extremely low cash bail or no-cash bail, that’s alarming. If, on the other hand, Kellum is taking specific orders about individual bail decisions from judges rather than exercising the independent authority entrusted to a court commissioner, that would raise a different and equally serious concern.

At this point, KCE simply doesn’t know which is happening. There could also be some combination of Kellum’s own philosophy, his relative inexperience with criminal law and general guidance he received when taking the position. What we can evaluate is what happens publicly from the bench, and that is what this grade is based upon.

There is another piece of context readers should know.

Sources tell KCE that during Kellum’s interview for the commissioner position, Judges Chad Kerkman and Jodi Meier spent considerable time discussing Kenosha County Eye and warning Kellum that his decisions would be subjected to intense public scrutiny. According to sources familiar with the interview, the judges also made disparaging remarks about KCE and its extensive coverage of crime and the local court system.

Kellum accepted the job anyway.

KCE is also told Kellum wasn’t the judges’ first choice. According to sources, the judges preferred former Kenosha City Attorney Ed Antaramian for the position, but the compensation available for the job wasn’t enough to make accepting it practical for him.

Kerkman also told members of law enforcement that the judges were having difficulty finding someone to take the commissioner position, according to sources. Taken together with what KCE has been told about Antaramian, Kerkman’s comments suggest Kellum may ultimately have been the candidate the judges settled on after their preferred candidate couldn’t be brought aboard.

None of that, however, determines whether Kellum will ultimately be a good commissioner.

KCE’s initial coverage of Kellum was deliberately fair. A longtime courthouse employee had good things to say about him, and we recognized from the beginning that someone without extensive criminal law experience would require training and time to become comfortable making these decisions.

We still believe he deserves that opportunity.

That’s why his grade is a C-minus and not an F.

But the trajectory is concerning. Court commissioners shouldn’t approach bail as liberal activists with an apparent presumption that virtually everyone should be released regardless of the seriousness of the allegations. Pretrial defendants have constitutional rights and have not been convicted of the charges against them. At the same time, Wisconsin’s Constitution expressly permits courts to consider protection of the community from serious harm when imposing release conditions and, for violent crimes as defined by law, permits additional public-safety considerations when determining monetary bail.

Those two principles aren’t mutually exclusive.

Kellum has an enormously important job. Every day, his decisions can affect defendants, victims, witnesses, police officers and ordinary members of the public who may never know his name unless one of those decisions goes terribly wrong.

Maybe what we’re seeing is simply the learning curve we anticipated when Kellum was appointed. Maybe we’re seeing Kellum’s own judicial philosophy emerge. Maybe guidance is coming from higher up in the courthouse.

Kenosha County Eye doesn’t know yet.

What we do know is what we’ve watched from the public gallery and on the record.

For his first several weeks as Kenosha County Judicial Court Commissioner, Daniel Kellum gets a C-minus.

There’s still plenty of time to bring that grade up.