MADISON, Wis. - Former Wisconsin Chief Justice Patience Roggensack has been ordered by a judge to produce records related to her involvement in advising Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos on the possibility of impeaching a current justice. The order comes amidst a lawsuit filed by the liberal watchdog group American Oversight, seeking records from Vos and the three former justices.

Roggensack, along with two other former justices, David Prosser and Jon Wilcox, was requested by Speaker Vos to provide advice on pursuing impeachment against Justice Janet Protasiewicz. The basis for the potential impeachment is Protasiewicz's rulings in a redistricting lawsuit, with Democrats hopeful for new electoral maps.

While Prosser and Wilcox turned over their records, Roggensack did not produce any. When American Oversight attempted to serve her with a subpoena at her home, they were met with confusion from an elderly man who claimed not to know her.

In response to the lack of cooperation from Roggensack, Dane County Circuit Judge Frank Remington issued an order requiring her to produce any relevant records within 30 days. The judge emphasized that all former justices have a responsibility to produce such documents "whether they understood it or not in accepting the invitation to opine on the question presented."

The records obtained from Vos were posted online by American Oversight and included a text exchange where Vos asked his chief of staff about conducting a poll on recusal to "affect the discussion," involving the conservative group, the Institute for Reforming Government.

Speaker Vos initially considered impeachment if Protasiewicz did not recuse herself from the redistricting case. However, following the advice against impeachment from the former justices, he chose not to pursue impeachment. Nevertheless, Vos is now hinting at the possibility of impeachment if Protasiewicz does not rule in favor of upholding the current Republican-drawn maps.

Under the Wisconsin Constitution, impeachment is reserved for cases of "corrupt conduct in office, or for crimes and misdemeanors."

Republicans argue that Protasiewicz has already pre-judged the case, referencing her campaign comments about the current maps being "unfair" and "rigged." However, Protasiewicz defends her decision not to recuse, stating that while expressing her opinion, she has not made any promises or pledges regarding her ruling.

The redistricting lawsuit, filed just after Protasiewicz joined the court, aims to have all 132 state lawmakers up for election next year in newly drawn districts. The existing legislative electoral maps drawn by the Republican-controlled Legislature in 2011 have solidified the party's majorities in the Assembly and Senate.

According to an analysis by The Associated Press, Wisconsin's Assembly districts are among the most gerrymandered in the country, consistently favoring the Republicans with more seats than expected based on their average share of the vote.