Supreme Court Justice Shirley Abrahamson announced today she is undergoing cancer treatment and intends to continue serving on the court.
Abrahamson, 84, announced in spring she would not seek another term. She announced at the time she would serve until the end of her term, which ends in 2019.
“I’ve not changed my mind on either point,” she said in a statement today. “The people of this state elected me to a position of public trust and responsibility, and I intend to keep that commitment.”
Abrahamson noted she participated in a number cases this past term by phone, and said she may continue to do so on occasion during the court’s new term, which begins next week. She said others on the court have done so due to illness or other reasons.
“My own participation by phone may well continue on occasion,” Abrahamson said. “In the meantime, when I next appear in court, it probably will be in a wheelchair, but I will still have my voice and most of the time, a smile.”
Abrahamson has served on the court since 1976 and was chief justice from 1996 until 2015. She is the first woman to serve on the high court.
Read the statement:
https://staging.wispolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/180831AbrahamsonStatement.pdf
