R. Michael Ferrall (born October 3, 1936) is a former member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

Biography

Ferrall was born in

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. He graduated from high school in

Gresham, Wisconsin Gresham is a village in Shawano County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 586 at the 2010 census. History The community was named for Walter Q. Gresham, who was the Postmaster General at the time the post office opened in December, ...

before receiving a

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree from the

University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point The University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point (UW–Stevens Point or UWSP) is a public university in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and grants associate, baccalaureate, and master's degrees, as well as ...

in 1962 and a

M.S. A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

from the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a public urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropolitan area and a member of the University of Wiscons ...

in 1967. From 1954 to 1957, Ferrall served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. He has five children.

Political career

Ferrall was first elected to the Assembly in 1970. He is a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

. In two successive legislative sessions, Ferrall championed the "Ferrall bill" to establish a

right to privacy The right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals. Over 150 national constitutions mention the right to privacy. On 10 December 1948 ...

in Wisconsin for the first time, making an invasion of the right to privacy and

false light In US law, false light is a tort concerning privacy that is similar to the tort of defamation. The privacy laws in the United States include a non-public person's right to protection from publicity that creates an untrue or misleading impre ...

causes of action A cause of action or right of action, in law, is a set of facts sufficient to justify suing to obtain money or property, or to justify the enforcement of a legal right against another party. The term also refers to the legal theory upon which a p ...

under state law. In 1975, the Assembly passed the bill but the Senate failed to act on it. In 1977, the bill passed committee and was sent to the Assembly floor, but was delayed on a close vote; critics were concerned about a proliferation of lawsuits and media outlets were concerned about

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic News media, media, especially publication, published materials, should be conside ...

issues. In 1978, Ferrall became embroiled in a controversy over a $30 legislative

per diem ''Per diem'' (Latin for "per day" or "for each day") or daily allowance is a specific amount of money that an organization gives an individual, typically an employee, per day to cover living expenses when travelling on the employer's business. A '' ...

allowance he received while maintaining a house in

Dane County Dane County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 561,504, making it the second-most populous county in Wisconsin. The county seat is Madison, which is also the state capital. Dane County is the ...

, where the capital of

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

is situated. State law provided that legislators who maintained "primary residence" in Dane County were entitled only to half the maximum $30 per diem allowance. Ferrall was eventually cleared of wrongdoing in a report by Legislative Counsel staff attorneys. In April 1979, Ferrall and fellow representative John Shabaz were arrested in separate incidents on charges of

driving under the influence Driving under the influence (DUI)—also called driving while impaired, impaired driving, driving while intoxicated (DWI), drunk driving, operating while intoxicated (OWI), operating under the influence (OUI), operating vehicle under the infl ...

. Ferrall decided not to fight the charge. Ferrall did not seek renomination to the Assembly in 1980. Ferrall's 1970-1980 papers are held by the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

library. Papers, 1970-1980
.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrall, R. Michael Politicians from Minneapolis Politicians from Racine, Wisconsin Military personnel from Wisconsin United States Navy sailors University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point alumni University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee alumni 1936 births Living people Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly