A municipal judge in Milwaukee County resigned from her position after prosecutors said she lied about her residence and about obtaining signatures she needed to run for reelection.
Former South Milwaukee municipal court judge Kelly Martyka on Sept. 15 was charged with false swearing in Milwaukee County Circuit Court. She faces up to nine months in prison and fines of up to $10,000 for the misdemeanor. She pleaded not guilty on Oct. 8, according to online court records.
Martyka, who was first elected in 2022, narrowly won her reelection bid in April. But a prosecutors accused her of lying about her residency in order to be eligible for the office, and charged her with a crime for allegedly lying about personally circulating her nomination paper forms and personally obtaining signatures on those forms in order to get on the ballot.
News with a little more humanity
WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” newsletter keeps you connected to the state you love without feeling overwhelmed. No paywall. No agenda. No corporate filter.
According to the complaint, Martyka on Dec. 18 signed the first page of the nomination papers form certifying that she “personally circulated that page and obtained each signature.”
“This was not true,” the complaint said. “Of the eight names on the page, at least five were obtained by other individuals. Martyka did not witness those signatures.”
Prosecutors wrote in the complaint that the name of the circulator and their address had been “whited out” on the form and that Martyka’s name and address was written over the white out. The complaint said the first page of the nomination papers form was improperly certified because of this.
“She would not have qualified for the ballot if this page was not included in her signature count,” the complaint said.
Martyka, who is also the director of development for the Milwaukee Parks Foundation, resigned from her municipal judge position on Sept 19.
“I want to be very clear: I am not resigning because I feel I have done anything wrong,” Martyka wrote in her resignation letter.
In the letter, she called the investigation a “targeted and intrusive attack against me and my husband that unfairly called into question my credibility, professionalism and ethics.”
The South Milwaukee Common Council approved a resolution Tuesday that ordered a special election on April 7, 2026 to fill the position.
The South Milwaukee Common Council is expected to pick a temporary replacement for Martyka in November, according to city clerk Steven Braatz. South Milwaukee Mayor Jim Shelenske could not be reached for comment Monday.
In a statement, Martyka’s attorney Jacob Manian wrote that she “voluntarily resigned” from her position to “avoid distracting from the important work of the court while she addresses allegations made by the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office.”
A spokesperson for the Milwaukee Parks Foundation declined to comment on the charges. Martyka will appear in court next on Oct. 29 for a pre-trial conference.
Martyka was primarily living in Racine, according to complaint
Prosecutors also said Martyka was primarily living in Racine when running for reelection and when she voted in the spring election on April 1. She was required to live in South Milwaukee for the role.
“A review of documentary evidence and witness statements shows that, in the 28 days preceding the election, Martyka was not residing in South Milwaukee,” the complaint said. “She resided in Racine with her spouse.”
In March, Martyka’s husband applied to be a police officer for the South Milwaukee Police Department. He listed a residence in Racine on the application form, according to the complaint.
“This raised concerns, as it seemed odd that Martyka would live separately from her husband,” the complaint said.
An investigator did “spot checks” at an address Martyka listed as her address — an apartment building in South Milwaukee — and the Racine home that her husband listed on the job application. The complaint said those checks revealed she was mostly living at the home in Racine.
“The pattern shown in this instance is that Martyka is usually at the Racine residence in the morning hours,” the complaint said. “This is consistent with an individual who is living at the residence.”
The complaint also includes cell phone records showing Martyka was in South Milwaukee on the day of the election, but was then at the Racine home the next seven nights.
“This is indicative of a person who lived in Racine, came into South Milwaukee the day of the election to vote and await the results of the vote, and then returned
to their residence in Racine after the election,” the complaint said.
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2025, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
