A judge in Wisconsin has been charged on multiple counts of possessing child pornography, court documents show.
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Brett Blomme was arrested Tuesday on charges of allegedly uploading images and videos containing child pornography in October and November through the messaging app “Kik” at least 27 times, the State Department of Justice (DOJ) announced in a 44-page statement.
If convicted, each count carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum sentence of three years.
“The defendant is facing seven felony charges, which are representative of as many as 27 potential charges as described in the criminal complaint,” Wisconsin Prosecutor David Maas said.
The complaint charges Bloome with uploading videos and images from a home owned by himself and his husband, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported.
The 38-year-old judge was held at the Dane County Jail and made his initial court appearance virtually on Wednesday when DOJ attorneys filed seven felony counts against Blomme, CBS58 reported.
Blomme is due back in court for his preliminary hearing on April 29.
In the meantime, he was released from prison after being assigned a signature bond.
While out on bond, Blomme has been ordered not to use social media or file-sharing apps online and is not allowed to have any unsupervised contact with children other than his own two adopted kids.
In a separate statement, the DOJ also announced they barred the judge from “exercising the powers of a circuit court judge in the State of Wisconsin” and ordered his salary to be “temporarily withheld.”
Blomme is the president and CEO of “Cream City Foundation”—a public service that mobilizes philanthropic resources for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people in Southeastern Wisconsin—according to his LinkedIn profile. The foundation hosts “Drag Queen Story Hour,” a children’s event in which drag queens read to children.
Sex offenders have been identified as participating in “Drag Queen Story Time” in Texas.
Blomme was elected last year in April for a spot on the Milwaukee County Circuit Court after defeating incumbent Paul Dedinsk, reported the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal.
Democratic Rep. Gwen Moore, who represents Wisconsin’s 4th Congressional District, gave a major endorsement to Blomme ahead of the primary.
“I support Brett because, like me, he is committed to making Milwaukee a better place for all of us,” Moore, who has yet to comment on Blomme’s arrest said at the time.
“He is a former public defender who has dedicated his career to fighting for justice and equity,” the endorsement continues. “Brett is the change we need to help fix our broken criminal justice system.”
