On Point blog, page 274 of 484

Effective Assistance of Counsel – Sentencing

State v. Troy D. Jefferson, 2011AP1778-CR, District 1, 6/26/12

court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

Counsel was ineffective for failing to inform the sentencing court “about Jefferson’s good character and positive social history.”

 ¶17      Specifically, trial counsel’s failure to inform the trial court about Jefferson’s good character and positive social history in any meaningful way was deficient because it was not,

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Transcript

Samex 1, LLC v. Bruce Buschman, 2011AP2634, District 1, 6/26/12

court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication)

¶2 n. 1:

If this appeal were not moot, our resolution of the appeal would have been difficult, if not impossible, because the transcript is not very helpful; there are more than two-dozen instances of “(Indiscernible)” or “(indiscernible)” in but a twenty-one page transcript.  Additionally, one of the sworn witnesses is merely identified as “A FEMALE.”  (Bolding omitted.)  The circuit court is responsible for the court reporter assigned to its court,

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Arrest – Probable Cause

State v. Matthew Owen Hoff, Jr., 2011AP2096-CR, District 3, 6/26/12

court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

¶19      Here, before arresting Hoff, Gostovich observed him sleeping behind the wheel of a running car that was parked horizontally against the vertical parking stalls.  Hoff did not awake to Gostovich’s shouting or knocking.  When he finally awoke, he was disorientated and confused, and that disorientation “did not dissipate.”  Hoff’s speech was slowed,

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Sex Offender Registration, § 973.048(1m): “Sexually Motivated” Conduct

State v. Willie H. Jackson, 2012 WI App 76 (recommended for publication); case activity

§ 973.048(1m) (2003-04) authorizes the sentencing court to require sex offender registration under § 301.45 for conviction of enumerated crimes, “if the court determines that the underlying conduct was sexually motivated as defined in s. 980.01(5)” and public protection would be advanced thereby. (“Sexually motivated,” as might be imagined, means that “sexual arousal or gratification”

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Sentencing, Expungement, § 973.015(1)(a) (2009-10): Retroactivity

State v. Nathan J. Meinhardt, 2012 WI App 82 (recommended for publication); case activity

Amendments to § 973.015(1)(a) (2009-10), which expanded the offender’s age-ceiling and the eligible pool of offenses, doesn’t apply retroactively.

¶3        The determinative issue in this case is whether the circuit court has the authority to apply the amended version of Wis. Stat.§ 973.015(1)(a) retroactively to Meinhardt’s case.  The question of whether a statute can be applied retroactively is a question of law which this court reviews de novo.  

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Sentence Modification: Repeal of Positive Adjustment Time not New Factor

State v. Michael D. Carroll, 2012 WI App 83 (recommended for publication); case activity

Repeal of ability to earn “positive adjustment time” wasn’t highly relevant to Carroll’s sentence, therefore didn’t constitute a new factor that could support sentence modification.

¶9        Because 2011 Wis. Act 38 did not become effective until more than a year after Carroll’s sentencing hearing, it is obvious that the sentencing judge could not have known about the repeal at the time of sentencing.  

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OWI – Refusal Hearing , Untimely Request, Competence of Court to Hear

Village of Elm Grove v. Richard K. Brefka, 2011AP2888, District 1/2, 6/19/12, WSC review granted 11/14/12

court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication), supreme court review granted 11/14/12; case activity

The municipal court lacks competence to extend the 10-day time deadline for requesting a refusal hearings, given the clear language of §§ 343.305(9)(a)4. and (10)(a). Village of Butler v.

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Collateral-Attack Procedure: Habeas (Knight Petition), Laches Bar – Serial Litigation Bar, Previously-Litigated Issue

State v. Jerred Renard Washington / Jerred Renard Washington v. State, 2012 WI App 74 (recommended for publication); case activity (974.06); case activity (writ)

Habeas (Knight Petition) – Laches 

Following his plea-based conviction in 1997, Washington’s retained counsel filed a postconviction 809.30 motion in 1998. Counsel did not file a notice of appeal, however, after the motion was denied. Then, in 2009,

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Plea-Withdrawal, Pre-Sentence – Newly Discovered Evidence

State v. Matthew J. Laughrin, 2011AP1600-CR, District 1, 6/12/12

court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

Laughrin, after pleading guilty to second-degree reckless homicide for providing a controlled substance (Suboxone) to someone who died after ingesting it, sought pre-sentencing plea-withdrawal on the basis of an expert’s report that Suboxone alone generally doesn’t cause death. The trial court denied the motion, and the court of appeals now affirms.

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TPR – Grounds: “Reasonable Effort” Obligation of Responsible Agency, § 48.415(2)(a)2b

State v. Elbert H., 2012AP446 / State v. Stacee P., 2012AP169, District 1, 6/12/12

court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); for Elbert H.: Devon M. Lee, SPD, Madison Appellate; case activity; for Stacee P.: Gregory Bates; case activity

The relevant agency’s responsibility to make a reasonable effort to provide court-ordered services encompasses post-petition activity:

¶8        Stacee P.’s contention that the proof of “reasonable effort” are limited to activities antedating the petition is belied by the statute,

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