Dunn Co. district attorney declines to recuse herself in fatal OWI case

MENOMONIE — The Dunn County District Attorney had announced she will not voluntarily recuse herself from prosecuting a fatal drunk-driving case on Dec. 24, where a Dunn County correctional officer died in the crash.

Mark A. Sokolowski, 41, 306 Minnesota St., Eau Claire, was charged with homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and injury by intoxicated use of a vehicle. He is accused of driving drunk and killing corrections officer Jeff Reynolds, as well as injuring other people in Sokolowski’s car. He also was cited for failure to stop at a stop sign, causing death. Sokolowski previously posted a $75,000 cash bond and remains free at this time.

Dunn County Judge Luke Wagner recused himself in early January, and the case is now being handled by Eau Claire Judge Jon Theisen.

However, Dunn County District Attorney Andrea Nodolf recently told Theisen that she does not plan to voluntarily recuse herself, although defense attorney Harry Hertel has asked her to withdraw. Court minutes show that Nodolf questioned if she would be forced to recuse herself in every case that involved a Dunn County employee. Hertel then filed a motion to force Nodolf off the case.

A hearing slated for this week has been canceled. Instead, Theisen has asked Hertel to submit a written brief by April 1 on why he should order a new prosecutor to handle the case, and Nodolf must file a response by April 15. Theisen then set a May 7 hearing that will be done via Zoom conference call, and he will come up with a memorandum on how the case proceeds forward.

Hertel also has asked Theisen to impose an order that would bar the media from taking photos or video of people who attend hearings, as multiple law enforcement officers are likely to attend. Theisen requested Hertel to draft a proposal for him to review.

The drunk-driving case is currently on hold, as Hertel said the recusal matter needs to be resolved before they have a preliminary hearing. Hertel said he “believes there is a bias” due to the fact the victim was an officer, court minutes state. Hertel thought the $75,000 cash bond was “out of line” compared to similar cases, but Nodolf does not think it was an unusually high amount.

Nodolf was reached this week, but declined to comment on the case, while Hertel did not respond to multiple attempts to reach him. At a hearing in early January, Hertel also indicated he may seek to have the case moved to a different jurisdiction.

As terms of his release, Sokolowski must maintain absolute sobriety and he cannot enter taverns.

Sokolowski has no prior criminal record in Wisconsin, according to the state’s online database.