Patrick J. Madden: Key Figure in the Wrongful Conviction of Don Miller.

This week after unprecedented hits on all the Free Don Miller websites, radio show and facebook page after Don's sentence modification hearing we are doing a series of articles on one of the main players in the case of Don Miller...

Iron County Circuit Court Judge Patrick J. Madden

For those of you who have been following Don's case for awhile, this series will be rehashing and re-presenting some information you are already aware of but, essential to outline to new followers to Don's case. However, we will be releasing a never before released audio interview with Judge Madden later this week that will shed some light on many of the questions old timers and new comers to Don's case have been asking this past week.

Today, we start with a look at Judge Madden's background and some history and events that unfolded in Iron County just before Judge Madden came to be appointed as Judge in Iron County, Wisconsin.

We will rewind a bit to give people a taste of what was happening in Iron County right before Madden moved to Iron County.

Excerpt from the Notorious History of Iron County....

A wild night in the Show Bar in 1978.

In the late 70's, we come to the story of the Iron County Circuit Court Judge Alex J. Raineri. Raineri first served as Iron County District Attorney for 18 years and then became judge in 1978.

While on the bench, Raineri recruited the Cuban born, Cira Gasbarri, widow of local Hurley man Jack Gasbarri to run the Show Bar in Hurley's famous lower block previously run by her deceased husband.

The Show Bar was well known as a wild gentlemens club featuring exotic dancers and prostitutes. Cira Gasbarri was a long time friend of Raineri after moving to the area in 1962 to work as an exotic dancer in Club Carnival where she eventually married the clubs owner Jack Gasbarri in 1968.

After moving back to Hurley to run the Show Bar for Raineri, Gasbarri became Raineri's lover and was well kept by him in exchange for running the Show Bar as he wished it to be run. Many events ensued at the Show Bar and the relationship between Raineri and Gasbarri in those few years and flared after a fire destroyed the Show Bar in 1979.

In a wild series of events following the fire, Gasbarri was claimed to have taken a pot shot at Raineri with a pistol in his chambers and rammed his car with hers in an argument soon after the fire. She also claimed that when she attended a judicial conference in Las Vegas with him for several weeks he had sent someone one day to their hotel room to try to kill her.

Meanwhile an ex- Show Bar prostitute was being held in a Milwaukee jail after being arrested on sale of heroin charges. She was then contacted by the FBI and offered immunity of charges relating to Show Bar activities if she was to testify to a federal grand jury about the illegal activities at the Show Bar.

After a 6 month long investigation by federal agents, Raineri was named in a federal grand jury indictment on 3 counts of promoting prostitution, perjury and threatening a federal grand jury witness.

After testimony from Raineri, an ex- Show Bar prostitute, a Show Bar bartender, Cira Gasbarri and others, Raineri was convicted on all charges and sentenced to 3 years in a federal prison and fined $15,000 by Judge Barbara Crabb.

In sentencing Raineri, Judge Crabb had this to say,

"My observation of the defendant during the course of the trial has convinced me that he lacks any recognition of the seriousness of his activities..."


Raineri was convicted "of acts corruptive of the very system over which he presided. Although he evinces little recognition of the implications of what he has done, his actions reveal to others a shameless disregard for the laws he was elected to uphold and for the people whose rights he was sworn to protect..."

She added, "perhaps through some psychological defense mechanism he has created his own view of what happened and refuses to acknowledge evidence that goes against his theory."

Judge Crabb took exception to reference by Gene Linehan, Raineri's attorney, that Hurley was "a unique society." She said she rejects empathetically any implication "that the people of Iron County neither wanted nor are entitled to a fair, even-handed and non-corrupt form of justice. It is precisely because the people of Iron County and everywhere else in the state of Wisconsin expect an deserve a judiciary guided by the princiles of fairness and integrity that the defendant's acts must be met with severity."

Then, in June 1981, the Wisconsin Supreme Court removes Judge Raineri from the bench in response to his conviction and also as a severe disciplinary measure in relation to complaints filed by the Judicial Commission against Raineri for ticket fixing and failing to recuse himself from a drunk driving case in which the defendant was his brother-in-law.

[ Read the official Supreme Court ruling removing Raineri from the bench for judicial and professional misconduct ]


Raineri newspaper archive - Ironwood Daily Globe  
Click on links below to download an original copy of article in .pdf format

• June 6, 1980 - Raineri indicted on 5 counts
• June 7, 1980 - Raineri denies allegations 
• November 12, 1980 - Raineri: Strange to be on other side of the fence - Gasbarri testifies in Raineri Case  
• December 3, 1980 - Ex- Show Bar prostitute testifies in Raineri case 
• December 9, 1980 - Defense opens in Raineri case  
• December 11, 1980 - Priest testifies in Raineri case 
• December 12, 1980 - Raineri takes the stand and denies all charges  
• December 17, 1980 - Jury deliberating in Raineri case 
• December 18, 1980 - Raineri convicted on all counts  
• February 18, 1981 - Raineri sentencing set 
• March 7, 1981 - Raineri sentenced to 3 years prison and $15,000 fine  
• February 9, 1982 - Raineri appeal is denied 

As can be imagined in the small community of Hurley, Iron County, Wisconsin, this was big news that was covered in all the major Wisconsin and Midwest Regions newspapers over a course of several months. Raineri, to this day, remains one of only three judges in Wisconsin ever removed permanently from the bench.

Patrick Madden was appointed Iron County District Attorney in 1985. When Judge Raineri was removed from the bench by the Wisconsin Supreme Court as a disciplinary measure and sent to prison on unrelated federal convictions, Judge John Varda was brought in to replace Raineri. Varda was nearing 70 years old and under Wisconsin law, Judge's must step down from the bench as a full-time Judge so, 9 months after being appointed DA, Patrick Madden was then appointed Iron County Circuit Court Judge.

click to enlarge articles


SEPTEMBER 16, 1985
Madden appointed DA of Iron County 

[ Download this article ]

June 30, 1986
Madden appointed Iron County Judge

[ Download this article ]

We hope this collection of newspaper articles and history excerpts gives readers a good feel for the mood in Iron County in the early 80's, the events leading up to Judge Madden's arrival to the County as the appointed Iron County DA and a bit of insight into his background.

In the next part of our series we will be going into events leading up to Don Miller's trial, the trial itself and the role Judge Madden played in it all.