On Point: 46. WI Court of Appeals

State v. William G. Bennett, 2012AP1757-CR, District 2, 1/30/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge; ineligible for publication); case activity

Evidence that Bennett sent a lewd and obscene letter to a person was sufficient to support conviction for disorderly conduct because the content of the letter placed it beyond a mere “personal annoyance” to the victim. Purely written speech can constitute disorderly conduct even if that written speech fails to cause an actual disturbance,

State v. James A. Krahn, 2012AP1898-CR, District 2, 1/30/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

Motion to dismiss second-offense OWI charge was properly denied, where the charge resulted from the state’s successful motion to reopen a conviction for a first offense that had been entered a few weeks after a conviction in another case that was also treated as a first offense:

¶6        Wisconsin trial courts have no subject-matter jurisdiction over second or subsequent drunk driving offenses tried as first offenses contrary to Wis.

State v. Richard Wade Shirley, 2012AP263-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

Denial of fair trial – restraint of defendant during trial

Defendant forfeited claim that he was deprived of a fair trial because at least one juror saw he was shackled in the court room: “Not only does the record show that Shirley failed to strike the one juror that the record demonstrates saw the restraints,

State v. Manuel R. Williams, 2012AP357-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

Terry stop – reasonable suspicion

Police had reasonable suspicion to stop defendant where, based on suppression hearing testimony, circuit court found that: the officers were sent to a shooting in “a high risk area”; when police arrived, they noticed Williams because he had a big jacket on and was holding his hands in an “odd” way,

State v. Douglas H. Stream, Case No. 2011AP2051, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

The circuit court properly denied the defendant’s Wis. Stat. § 974.06 postconviction motion, which claimed that his trial  lawyer was ineffective for not objecting to references to the truthfulness of his confession during a Goodchild hearing to determine voluntariness of the confession and that his postconviction lawyer was ineffective for failing to challenge his trial lawyer’s effectiveness.

State v. Robert L. Tatum, Case No. 2011AP2439-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

Denial of right to self-representation – competence to represent oneself

The circuit court properly denied Tatum the right to represent himself based on his limited education and understanding of legal procedures, as evidenced by his statements and behavior in court. (¶13). While the circuit court found Tatum competent to proceed under Wis.

State v. John Doe, 2012AP414-CR, District 1, 1/23/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

The circuit court properly exercised its discretion in denying the defendant’s motion for sentence modification based on his assistance to law enforcement. The circuit court considered the factors established by State v. Doe, 2005 WI App 68, 280 Wis. 2d 731, 697 N.W.2d 101, for determining when post-sentencing assistance to law enforcement is a new factor,

State v. Kevin O’Connor, 2012AP1638-CR, District 2, 1/23/12; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

Police lawfully stopped defendant because the vehicle he was driving did not have a visible front license plate. While there are exceptions to  the statute requiring vehicles to display a front plate (Wis. Stat. § 341.15), the “great majority” of vehicles on the road are required to have a front plate.

State v. Jack Minniecheske, 2012AP1133, District 3, 1/23/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, not eligible for publication); case activity

 Because Wis. Stat.  § 950.04(1v)(m) gives victims the right to provide statements at sentencing, the circuit court properly considered a victim impact statement despite defendant’s objection to it as “frivolous” and his claim the victim stole his property. “Moreover, given Minniecheske’s sentence, a fine and costs, there is no indication in the record that the court sentenced Minniecheske more harshly because of the allegations in the victim impact statement.” (¶8).

State v. Tamara Jo Potter, 2012AP1605-CR, District 3, 1/23/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

Police lawfully stopped the defendant based on information from an anonymous tip that was corroborated by the officer’s observations. Minnesota police told Douglas County dispatch that it had received a tip of a “swerving” car heading into Superior. An officer in Superior located a car meeting the description and followed it.