On Point blog, page 3 of 32
Seventh Circuit denies habeas appeal alleging IAC for failure to seek in camera review of complainant’s medical records
Tony P. Rogers v. Jason Wells, Warden, No. 17-2903, 3/22/24
Although Rogers claims that his trial counsel was ineffective for not seeking records to impeach the credibility of his accuser in this sexual assault case, the Seventh Circuit court is unpersuaded that the high bar for habeas relief has been met and affirms the district court’s denial of the petition.
SCOW affirms denial of supervisory writ, seeks to clarify “preferred” appellate procedure to challenge denied substitution request
State ex rel. Antonio S. Davis v. Circuit Court for Dane County, the Honorable Ellen K. Berz and State of Wisconsin, 2024 WI 14, 3/26/24; case activity
A majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court affirms the court of appeals’ denial of Davis’ petition for a supervisory writ after concluding the the circuit court had no “plain duty” to treat Davis’ request for substitution as timely under Wis. Stat. § 971.20(4). The court also uses the decision to clarify that a petition for a supervisory writ is not the preferred vehicle to seek appellate review of a circuit court’s denial of a request for substitution that was filed after arraignment. Op, ¶11.
COA affirms conviction despite trial judge’s “vocal opinions” about COA’s prior decision granting plea withdrawal
State v. Matthew Curtis Stills, 2022AP1390-CR, 2/13/24, District 1 (not recommended for publication); case activity
This 2016 case out of Milwaukee County has a bit of a backstory and an unfortunate ending for Sills. In 2020, the court of appeals reversed Sills’ conviction based on a Bangert violation related to the circuit court’s failure to advise Sills of the maximum fine. Thereafter, Sills went to trial, was convicted, and was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment, compared to the 15 years he received after his original plea. This time around, Sills raises two issues on appeal: (1) that trial court’s objective bias violated his right to a fair trial and (2) that his trial attorney provided ineffective assistance of counsel. Unlike his first appeal, the court affirms rejects his claims and affirms his new conviction.
Seventh Circuit denies habeas relief; holds that WI COA reasonably applied case law regarding invocation of right to remain silent
Johnnie Mertice Wesley v. Randall Hepp, No. 22-2968, 1/5/24
Wesley’s challenges to law enforcement conduct which resulted in him giving inculpatory statements fail, as the Seventh Circuit concludes that the Wisconsin Court of Appeals reasonably applied SCOTUS precedent.
Seventh Circuit holds that Wisconsin Court of Appeals did not unreasonably apply harmless error test
Deshawn Harold Jewell v. Gary Boughton, No. 22-3082, 1/22/24
Despite an obvious constitutional violation, Jewell is still precluded from obtaining a new trial given that Wisconsin courts did not unreasonably find the error harmless.
Federal court denies habeas relief for “sane but dangerous” NGI-acquittee; offers novel interpretation of Randall I
Graham L. Stowe v. Gregory Van Rybroek, 18-CV-400-wmc (W.D. Wis. 11/6/23).
Having recently prevailed on a judicial bias claim in state court, Stowe makes a return appearance to the blog on his 2018 federal habeas petition. Unfortunately, the Western District of Wisconsin denied the petition, which had been pending for close 5 years. The petition sought relief from the Wisconsin courts’ denial of his 2016 petition for conditional release under Wis. Stat. § 971.17(4)(d). In a novel reading of a nearly three-decades old Wisconsin Supreme Court decision, State v. Randall, 192 Wis. 2d 800, 532 N.W.2d 94 (1995) (“Randall I”), the federal court concludes that “one can reasonably read Randall I to require a showing of both mental illness and dangerousness.”
Eastern District grants writ of habeas corpus, holds that SCOW unreasonably applied SCOTUS precedents in missing transcripts case
Robert James Pope , Jr. v. Warden Paul Kemper, 21-CV-0346 (E.D. Wis. 9/1/23).
In a satisfying–and long-delayed–defense win, Judge Ludwig of the Eastern District acknowledges that when a prisoner, previously abandoned by counsel, is then forced to appeal his conviction without having transcripts made available to him, that procedure violates “clearly established” US Constitutional law.
Seventh Circuit rejects factual findings of lower courts but affirms on the merits in close habeas loss
Jones v. Cromwell, 75 F.4th 722 (7th Cir. 2022).
In a disappointing defense loss, the Seventh Circuit holds that, at least under these circumstances, the defendant’s request for a “public pretender” was sufficiently ambiguous such that police had no obligation to cease their interrogation.
7th Circuit denies habeas relief to Wisconsin prisoner despite being “deeply troubled by the performance of defense counsel;” addresses impact of no-merit petition for review as to alleged procedural default
Tyler A. Gonzales v. Cheryl Eplett, No. 22-2393, 8/9/23 (Available on Westlaw as 2023 WL 5086451)
In a case demonstrating the full power of AEDPA’s stringent standard of review, the 7th Circuit is powerless to grant a new trial despite its palpable discomfort when evaluating the performance of defense counsel.
Legal innocence is not enough
Jones v. Hendrix, 143 S.Ct. 1857, 599 U.S. __ (June 22, 2023); Scotusblog page (containing links to briefs and commentary)
The Court, in a 6-3 opinion authored by Justice Thomas, holds that the savings clause in 28 U.S.C. 2255(e) bars a prisoner from using an intervening change in the interpretation of a federal criminal statute to circumvent AEDPA’s restrictions on successive Section 2255 motions by filing a habeas petition under Section 2241.