Wisconsin Code § 59.27

Sheriff; duties
Open in Lexace · Ask the AI about this section
The sheriff of a county shall do all of
the following:
(1) Take the charge and custody of the jail maintained by the
county and the persons in the jail, and keep the persons in the jail
personally or by a deputy or jailer.
(2) Keep a true and exact register of all prisoners committed
to any jail under the sheriff’s charge, in a book for that purpose,
which shall contain the names of all persons who are committed
to any such jail, their residence, the time when committed and
cause of commitment, and the authority by which they were committed; and if for a criminal offense, a description of the person;
and when any prisoner is liberated, state the time when and the
authority by which the prisoner was liberated; and if any person
escapes, state the particulars of the time and manner of such
escape.
(3) Attend upon the circuit court held in the sheriff’s county
during its session, and at the request of the court file with the
clerk thereof a list of deputies for attendance on the court. The
court may by special order authorize additional deputies to attend
when the court is engaged in the trial of any person charged with
a crime. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the board
shall establish the rate of compensation and the level of services
to be provided. The sheriff or one or more deputies shall attend
the court of appeals when it is in session in the sheriff’s county.
The state shall reimburse the county from the appropriation under s. 20.660 (1) for the actual salary paid to the sheriff or
deputies for the service provided for the court of appeals.
(4) Personally, or by the undersheriff or deputies, serve or execute all processes, writs, precepts and orders issued or made by
lawful authority and delivered to the sheriff.
(5) Deliver on demand to the sheriff’s successor in office,
when the sheriff’s successor has qualified according to law, the
jail and other property of the county and all prisoners in the jail,
and all books, records, writs, processes, orders and other papers
belonging to the sheriff’s office and in the possession of the sheriff, undersheriff, jailer or deputies, except as provided in s. 59.33,
and upon the delivery of these items the successor in office shall
execute a receipt to the sheriff therefor.
(6) In counties having a population of 300,000 or more, assign one deputy, to be mutually agreed upon by the sheriff and
the district attorney, to the office of the district attorney.
(7) Perform all other duties required of the sheriff by law.
(8) The sheriff is authorized to destroy all sheriff’s dockets,
daily jail records and cash books dated prior to 1901. It shall be
the duty of the sheriff to retain and safely keep all such records
for a period of 8 years, or a shorter period authorized by the public records board under s. 16.61 (3) (b) , after which the records
may be destroyed.
(9) When the sheriff is required to serve or execute a summons, order or judgment, or to do any other act, the sheriff shall
be bound to do so in like manner as upon process issued to the
sheriff, and shall be equally liable in all respects for neglect of
duty; and if the sheriff is a party the coroner shall perform the
service and all statutes relating to sheriffs shall apply to coroners
where the sheriff is a party.
(10) To enforce in the county all general orders of the department of safety and professional services relating to the sale, transportation and storage of explosives.
(11) Conduct operations within the county and, when the
board so provides, in waters of which the county has jurisdiction
under s. 2.04 for the rescue of human beings and for the recovery
of human bodies.
(12) Before conducting a sale of foreclosed property, contact
the clerk of the federal bankruptcy court to determine whether
the court has granted a stay of relief on that property.
(13) Enforce all city, or village, ordinances in a city, or village, in which the sheriff provides law enforcement services under a contract described under s. 62.13 (2s) (a).

‹ Prev All Wisconsin sections Next ›


Lexace provides legal information, not legal advice, and no attorney–client relationship is created. Statute text is provided for general information and may not reflect the most recent amendments; verify against the official state code.