On Point: B. Published opinions

The court of appeals has ordered publication of the following criminal law related decision:

State v. Nicholas Reed Adell, 2021 WI App 72 (circumstances justified extension of traffic stop to determine whether driver had prohibited alcohol content)

On September 29, 2021, the court of appeals ordered the publication of the following criminal-law related decision:

State v. Joel R. Davis, 2021 WI App 65 (police unlawfully prolonged traffic stop to research motorist’s bond conditions).

State v. Nicholas Reed Adell, 2021 WI App 72; case activity (including briefs)

Reversing a circuit court order suppressing evidence, the court of appeals holds the totality of the circumstances gave rise to a reasonable suspicion that Adell was driving with a prohibited alcohol concentration (PAC) and that police could extend the traffic stop to have Adell perform field sobriety tests (FSTs).

On August 25, 2021, the court of appeals ordered publication of the following criminal law related decisions:

State v. Oscar C. Thomas, 2021 WI App 55 (rejecting challenges to conviction based on Confrontation Clause violation, corroboration of confession issue, and biased juror claim).

State v. Avery B. Thomas, 2021 WI App 59 (defendant entitled to credit for time in custody on federal supervision hold due to Wisconsin criminal case conduct).

State v. Joel R. Davis, 2021 WI App 65; case activity (including briefs)

A police officer stopped Davis’s car in the early evening. He initially said it was because Davis lacked a passenger-side mirror. But it turns out that’s not illegal. Wis. Stat. § 347.40. So the next day–and despite having failed to mention it to the other officers at the stop, which was video recorded–he “updated” his report to say that actually, he’d stopped Davis for a seatbelt violation. But the body-cam video shows that Davis’s seatbelt was fastened when the officer initially approached the car.

State v. Oscar C. Thomas, 2021 WI App 55; Review granted 1/11/22; affirmed 2/21/23; case activity (including briefs)

This is the appeal from Thomas’s second conviction at trial for the false imprisonment, sexual assault and murder of his wife. (The first conviction was ultimately undone by the Seventh Circuit, which held that his counsel had been ineffective for failing to seek out certain expert testimony.) Thomas raises three issues. He claims he was convicted of the sexual assault count in violation of the corroboration rule, because the only evidence it occurred was his own confession. He also says all three convictions were obtained in violation of his right to confrontation, as the state introduced a hearsay lab report concerning DNA evidence during cross-examination of his expert. And he argues one of the jurors was objectively biased because she at least believed she was a cousin of one state’s witness. The court rejects all three claims.

State v. Avery B. Thomas, Jr., 2021 WI App 59; case activity (including briefs)

Thomas was arrested for and charged with criminal conduct while he was on federal supervision. He was held on cash bail till after his plea, when his bail was modified to a signature bond. He remained in custody, though, because the feds had put a revocation hold on him. He was eventually sentenced after revocation on the federal case, and about a month after that he was sentenced in the Wisconsin case. (¶¶2-4). The Wisconsin court erred in denying Thomas credit for the 48 days he was in custody between the date his bail was modified and the date of his federal sentencing.

On July 28, 2021, the court of appeals ordered publication of the following criminal law related decisions:

On June 30, 2021, the court of appeals ordered the publication of the following criminal law related decision:

State v. Alijouwon T. Watkins, 2021 WI App 37 (events that happen after trial can’t be basis for newly-discovered evidence claim)

State v. Daniel J. Rejholec, 2021 WI App 45; case activity (including briefs)

Police arrested Rejholec on suspicion of sexual assault of a minor. After receiving the Miranda admonitions, Rejholec agreed to speak with a detective. The interrogation was recorded on video. That video reveals the detective’s aggressive deployment of the so-called Reid technique: a method of extracting confessions (be they true or false). The detective bullies, cajoles and wheedles until he gets what he’s after: a confession. Oh, the detective also lies, floridly.