In a striking legal move, a class action lawsuit has been filed against Jefferson County, Wisconsin, challenging the legality of its mandatory booking fee policy. The complaint was lodged by plaintiffs Sara Domres and Randall Berth in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin on January 22, 2026. The lawsuit accuses Jefferson County and its Sheriff, Travis Maze, of imposing unconstitutional fees on individuals booked into the county jail without due process or legal justification.
The plaintiffs allege that Jefferson County’s Sheriff’s Office charges a $26.38 booking fee to individuals arrested on suspicion of parole violations without any judicial oversight or legal basis. According to the complaint, this fee is deducted from arrestees’ personal cash at intake or later collected from their tax refunds if no cash is available. “This mandatory booking fee is not charged pursuant to a criminal conviction or civil judgment,” the lawsuit states, emphasizing that it is imposed unilaterally by law enforcement officials without consent or opportunity for appeal.
Domres and Berth argue that this practice violates fundamental principles of due process and equal protection under the law. They highlight that the fee is applied solely based on an arresting officer’s discretion rather than any adjudicative body or established law. The plaintiffs contend that such arbitrary imposition of fees contravenes constitutional rights, as it lacks any pre- or post-deprivation process for challenging or reimbursing these fees.
The case further details how both plaintiffs were subjected to this fee despite being released without charges after their respective arrests. Domres was detained due to a malfunction alert from her GPS tracking device while on parole supervision; she was held over a holiday weekend until her release two days later with no fault found on her part. Similarly, Berth was arrested under similar circumstances when his GPS device triggered an alert outside business hours; he too was released after no violation was determined.
The lawsuit seeks several forms of relief from the court: declaratory judgment deeming the booking fees unlawful, an injunction preventing further imposition of such fees, monetary damages for affected individuals, and coverage of attorney fees and costs. Plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Phil Telfeyan and Caroline McCance from Equal Justice Under Law in Washington D.C., along with Mark Weinberg and Adele Nicholas from Chicago.
The case is under Case ID 3:26-cv-50. As this legal battle unfolds, it challenges not only local policies but also broader interpretations of constitutional protections against arbitrary government actions.
Source: 326cv00050_Domres_v_Jefferson_County_Complaint_Western_District_Wisconsin.pdf
