Milwaukee Court Commissioner Charged With Tax Fraud Makes Initial Appearance

MILWAUKEE – Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced today that Milwaukee County Court Commissioner Geneva E. McKinley made her initial appearance in Dane County Circuit Court on two counts of filing false and fraudulent income tax returns. McKinley was ordered to be booked and released, and a status conference has been scheduled for August 15, 2011, before Judge Julie Genovese.

According to the criminal complaint, McKinley filed income tax returns for the 2006 and 2007 tax years on the same date on May 28, 2008. The complaint alleges that McKinley failed to report rental income she received each year on commercial real estate property she owned. It also alleges that McKinley failed to report attorneys fees she was paid for private legal work in 2006, prior to becoming a court commissioner. For the two years combined, McKinley reported only $19,391 in adjusted gross income, when her actual adjusted gross income should have been reported as over $135,000.

Each charge of filing false and fraudulent income tax returns is a class H felony, punishable by imprisonment up to 6 years and a $10,000 fine, or both.

A criminal complaint is a document accusing a person of a violation of criminal law. A defendant enjoys a presumption of innocence. The prosecution must prove its allegations at trial beyond a reasonable doubt.

Assistant Attorney General David W. Maas is representing the State.

A copy of the criminal complaint can be accessed at: