In a news release from the Wisconsin Department of Justice, retired Juneau County Circuit Court judge John Roemer was found dead in his residence in the Township of New Lisbon on Friday.
A source familiar with the investigation told CNN, that authorities are calling it a targeted attack by a suspect who also had other government officials as targets.
A senior law enforcement official said cited by news outlets that the Juneau County Special Tactics and Response Team eventually entered the property and discovered Roemer’s body allegedly tied up with zip ties.
The department said, authorities tried to negotiate with the suspect, identified as Douglas K. Uhde, 56, who was still in the home, but their attempts were unsuccessful. Following attempts by police to negotiate with him, Uhde was found in the basement of the home with a self-inflicted gunshot wound, he was later hospitalized and in critical condition.
The shooting looked to be a “targeted act,” according to Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, who said the attacker chose persons who were “part of the justice system.”
The official said, however, investigators believe the gunman also may have planned to target other government officials and found a list in his vehicle that contained the names of several other prominent elected leaders, a law enforcement official said. The other targets on the list, which mentioned Roemer, included Evers, McConnell, and Whitmer.
Uhde has a lengthy criminal and prison record that spans more than two decades, including a case in which Roemer sentenced him to six years in prison on weapons charges. In April 2020, he was released from his most recent prison sentence.
Whitmer’s deputy chief of staff, Zach Pohl, claimed her office received notification that her name was “on the Wisconsin gunman’s list.”
Sources: Dailywire, Nbcnews, CNN