On Point: 35. Search & Seizure

State v. Kenneth M. Sobczak, 2013 WI 52, affirming published court of appeals decision; case activity; majority opinion by Justice Gableman; Chief Justice Abrahamson and Justice Bradley dissent.

In a significant expansion of the third-party consent doctrine, the supreme court holds that a weekend guest may grant consent to police to enter her host’s home and conduct a search. The court concludes the rule governing third-party consent articulated in United States v.

Review of unpublished court of appeals decision; case activity

Issue (from the Petition for Review)

Should this Court accept review to examine when law enforcement can electronically track a cell phone in order to locate the phone’s user?

More specifically, should this Court review a) whether obtaining a cell phone’s location constitutes a “search” within the meaning of the 4th Amendment, b) if so,

Maryland v. King, USSC No. 12-207, 6/3/13

United States Supreme Court decision, reversing King v. State, 425 Md. 550, 42 A.3d 549 (2012)

In a decision validating the collection of DNA from at least some persons before they are even convicted of a crime, a divided Supreme Court has concluded that when officers make an arrest supported by probable cause for a “serious”

The United States Supreme Court’s decision in Missouri v. McNeely marked a big change for Wisconsin.  Click here for On Point’s analysis of the case.  If you’re yearning for more information on what McNeely means for Wisconsin OWI cases, you might want to watch this half-hour program on Wisconsin Eye.  It features Dane County Judge William Foust, AAG  Tara Jenswold, and Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney talking about how the courts and law enforcement intend to implement the change.  

State v. John C. Baker, 2012AP2163-CR, District 2/4, 5/30/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity

The totality of the circumstances shows a police officer could reasonably suspect that a break-in had occurred or was about to occur at the time the officer temporarily detained Baker for the purpose of investigating that reasonable suspicion. The court concludes that even though “pulling one’s vehicle into a closed business during the middle of the night,

Question presented:

Proper interpretation of Georgia v. Randolph, 547 U.S. 103, 126 S.Ct. 1515, 164 L.Ed.2d 208 (2006), specifically whether a defendant must be personally present and objecting when police officers ask a co-tenant for consent to conduct a warrantless search or whether a defendant’s previously-stated objection, while physically present, to a warrantless search is a continuing assertion of 4th Amendment rights which cannot be overridden by a co-tenant.

Village of Muscoda v. Samuel R. Anderson, 2012AP2216, District 4, 5/16/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

Police had probable cause to administer a PBT where: the officer noticed an odor of intoxicants emanating from Anderson or his vehicle; Anderson had bloodshot eyes and slightly slurred speech and admitted he had consumed five drinks over the course of the night; and Anderson’s performance on the walk-and-turn and one-leg-stand tests suggested he might be intoxicated.

State v. Travis M. Ranta, 2012AP1663, District 4 (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

Police were called to a campsite where the defendant admitted to drinking with underage individuals.  An hour later, another officer was called to the same site, where he observed the defendant behaving in a “belligerent, uncooperative [and] loud” manner.  A PBT showed the defendant had a .156 BAC, so he was informed that he couldn’t drive his truck out of the campsite.  

County of Fond Du Lac v. Nathan M. Kohlwey, 2013AP101-FT, District 2, May 1, 2013; (not recommended for publication); case activity.

This appeal may take the prize for the skimpiest briefs–the appellant’s is 6 pages and the respondent’s is 3.  This post is even shorter.

After receiving a 911 call about a driver who had fallen asleep in a truck at a stop sign, sheriff’s deputies stopped a different car,

Fond du Lac County v. Ian A. Niquette, 2012AP2708, District 2, 4/24/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity

Police had probable cause to have Niquette do a PBT despite his good performance on the field sobriety tests, applying State v. Felton, 2012 WI App 114, ¶10, 344 Wis. 2d 483, 824 N.W.2d 871:

¶5        …. Niquette crashed his truck into the back of a parked vehicle in a twenty-five-mile-per-hour speed zone with enough force to flip his vehicle onto its side.