On July 19, U.S. District Court Judge Lynn Adelman, a Clinton, issued an order in Frank v Walker, e.d., 11-cv-1128. This is the case filed in 2011 over Wisconsin’s law requiring voters at the polls to show photo I.D. The order says the state must let voters vote if they sign a declaration at the polls that says, under penalty of perjury, that they have been unable to obtain photo I.D. The form will list a checkbox of possible reasons: “lack of transportation, lack of documents, work schedule, disability or illness, family responsibilities, or other (fill in blank).”

Here is the 46-page decision. The part of the decision starting at page 20 explains the barriers that some voters face when they try to take advantage of the state law that permits them to obtain a free I.D. The free I.D. can’t be issued without documents proving the person’s identity. The decision goes into details of the difficulties this causes for certain particular voters.