On Point blog, page 8 of 10

§ 943.10, Burglary – Sufficiency of Evidence – Fingerprint Evidence

State v. Dennis E. Scott, 2000 WI App 51, 234 Wis. 2d 129, 608 N.W.2d 753
For Scott: Joseph E. Redding

Issue: Whether the evidence was sufficient to support conviction for burglary/theft.

Holding: Evidence that defendant’s fingerprint was found on the “dock station” from which a lap-top was stolen from an office that sold only to other businesses and was not open to the public; and that defendant neither had worked nor had permission to be there sufficed to support the conviction.

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§ 943.10(1)(a), Burglary – Entry to Commit Felony (Bail Jumping, § 946.49(1)(b))

State v. Jerome G. Semrau, 2000 WI App 54, 233 Wis. 2d 508, 608 N.W.2d 376
For Semrau: John D. Lubarsky, SPD, Madison Appellate

Issue: Whether the commission of felony bail jumping, by entering the complainant’s home in violation of bond conditions, supports burglary-entry of dwelling with intent to commit felony.

Holding: The underlying felony component of burglary must be a crime against persons or property; Semrau’s “core conduct”

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§ 943.38, Forgery – Endorsement with Fictitious Name as Commercially Acceptable Practice

State v. Scot A. Czarnecki, 2000 WI App 155, 237 Wis.2d 794, 615 N.W.2d 672
For Czarnecki: Patrick M. Donnelly, SPD, Madison Appellate

Issue: Whether use of an assumed name in endorsing a check may subject the endorser to forgery charge.

Holding:

¶7        In further support of his challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, Czarnecki argues that even if he endorsed the checks with the surname “Dougan,” there was nothing false or unlawful about these endorsements. 

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§ 946.49, Bail Jumping — Condition Restricting Contact with Individual

State v. Peter J. Schaab, 2000 WI App 204, 238 Wis. 2d 598, 617 N.W.2d 872
For Schaab: Michael G. Artery

Issue: Whether the evidence supported bindover on bail jumping, where the allegedly violated bond condition allowed Schaab to have “incidental contact at work” with an individual, and Schaab was seen talking to the individual at the work site after Schaab was no longer employed there.

Holding: Bail jumping requires intentional violation of a bond condition,

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Arrest — Probable Cause — Citizen-Informant — Connection Between Defendant and Deceased

State v. Joel L. Ritchie, 2000 WI App 136, 237 Wis.2d 664, 614 N.W.2d 837
For Ritchie: Stephen G. Bauer

Holding: Various informants were sufficiently reliable to support probable cause: though they weren’t expressly identified as citizen informants, they wree not suspects but, rather, “were ordinary persons who answered questions and provided information in response to a police investigation of a crime.” ¶15. (Note: though not mentioned by the court,

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Arrest — Search Incident to Arrest — “Protective Sweep” of Residence

State v. Antonion Blanco, Nora M. Al-Shammari, 2000 WI App 119, 237 Wis.2d 395, 614 N.W.2d 512
For Blanco: Michael P. Jakus

Issue: Whether the police were justified, under “protective sweep” rationale, to search a crawl space in a bathroom ceiling.

Holding: Though narrowly confined to cursory inspection of places where a person might be hiding following an arrest inside of a residence, the protective-sweep doctrine in this case justified search of a crawl space bolted in place by four screws.

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Arrest — Search Incident to Arrest — Warrantless Blood Test

State v. John C. Thorstad, 2000 WI App 199, 238 Wis. 2d 666, 618 N.W.2d 240
For Thorstad: Ralph A. Kalal

Issue: Whether the warrantless blood draw complied with State v. Bohling, 173 Wis. 2d 529, 494 N.W.2d 399 (1993).

Holding: The four-part Bohling test — lawful arrest; reasonable suspicion that draw will show intoxication; method of drawing blood reasonable; no reasonable objection by arrestee to blood draw —

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Arrest — Warrant, Based on Criminal Complaint — Standard of Review

State v. Joel L. Ritchie, 2000 WI App 136, 237 Wis.2d 664, 614 N.W.2d 837
For Ritchie: Steven G. Bauer

Issue: What is the standard of review for an arrest warrant based on a criminal complaint?

Holding: Although review of probable cause to support a complaint is independent, review of probable cause to support an arrest warrant based on a complaint is greatly deferential (same as review of a search warrant).

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Attenuation of Taint — Search Warrant

State v. Kenneth M. Herrmann, 2000 WI App 38, 233 Wis. 2d 135, 608 N.W.2d 406
For Herrmann: Peter J. Morin

Issue: Whether the search warrant for Herrmann’s apartment was supported by evidence sufficiently untainted by an illegal entry into his apartment.

Holding: The untainted discovery of nine marijuana plants, prior to the occurrence of the illegal police action, provided probable cause to believe that other contraband would be found in the apartment,

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Search & Seizure – Applicability of Exclusionary Rule — Government Action – Conduct by Non-Police Officer Pursuant to Court Order

State v. Robert C. Knight, 2000 WI App 16, 232 Wis.2d 305, 606 N.W.2d 291.
For Knight: Scott B. Taylor.

Issue: Whether seizure of a disbarred attorney’s client files by a court-ordered trustee amounted to governmental action so as to trigger fourth amendment protections.

Holding:

¶8 Here, Garczynski’s seizure and search of Knight’s client files were conducted pursuant to an order issued by Judge Carlson under the authority conferred on the circuit courts by the Wisconsin Supreme Court in Rule 22.271(2).

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