On Point: 1. Stops, in general

State v. Todd W. Vaughn, 2022AP644-Cr, 9/29/22, District 4 (1-judge opinion, ineligible for publication); case activity (including briefs)

Vaughn was convicted of operating a vehicle with a PAC, second offense. He claimed that the deputy who stopped him lacked reasonable suspicion because he acted solely on an uncorroborated anonymous tip. The court of appeals held that the tip provided reasonable suspicion for the stop because  it had “indicia of reliability” that were “suitably corroborated” as required by State v. Williams, 2001 WI 21, ¶31, 241
Wis. 2d 631, 623 N.W.2d 106.

State v. Brynton C. Foston, 2022AP387, 9/14/22, District 2, (1-judge opinion, ineligible for publication); case activity (including briefs)

An officer saw Foston driving without headlights between 2:00 and 3:00 a.m. and activated his emergency lights. Foston didn’t stop. He accelerated, pulled into his driveway, and stumbled as he tried to reach his back door. The officer started giving commands, and Foston, who had bloodshot eyes and slurred speech became argumentative.

City of West Bend v. Peter F. Parsons, 2022AP98, 8/17/22, District 2 (one-judge decision; ineligible for publication); case activity (including briefs)

This is an appeal of convictions for violating local ordinances in conformity with the state laws outlawing OWI. The court of appeals affirms.

State v. Avan Rondell Nimmer, 2022 WI 47, June 23, 2022, reversing an unpublished court of appeals decision; case activity (including briefs)

This decision ultimately involves only the application of well-settled 4th Amendment law to the particular facts of the case rather than development of the law. But it comes perilously close to something worse, for three justices embrace a modification of the quantum of evidence needed to justify an investigatory stop and accept uncritically the claims that the manufacturer of ShotSpotter acoustic sensors makes for the accuracy of its product and touts the device’s asserted accuracy in assessing reasonable suspicion in future cases.

County v. Buffalo v. Kevin J. Rich, 2020AP1526, 6/7/22, District 3 (1-judge opinion, ineligible for publication); case activity (including briefs)

The court of appeals rejected all three of Rich’s challenges to his OWI 1st conviction. It held that the deputy did have reasonable suspicion to stop Rich’s jeep and to expand the stop to require field sobriety tests. It also held that even though Rich gave six breath samples, he consented to and completed just one breath test.

State v. Joshua John Hansen, 2021AP1006 & 2021AP1620-CR, District 4, 5/5/22 (one-judge decision; ineligible for publication); case activity (including briefs)

A blue light illuminating the rear license plate is an apparent equipment violation and thus justified the stop of Hansen’s car. Once stopped, the officer had reasonable suspicion to extend the stop to investigate whether Hansen was operating while intoxicated.

State v. Bradley C.  Burgess, 2021AP1067-CR, District 4, 4/21/22 (not recommended for publication); case activity (including briefs)

A traffic stop should last only as long as necessary for the police to complete the “mission” of investigating the traffic infraction that justified the stop, including ordinary inquiries incident to the stop. Rodriguez v. U.S., 575 U.S. 348 (2015); State v. Smith, 2018 WI 2, 379 Wis. 2d 86, 905 N.W.2d 353. Applying that standard here, the court of appeals holds the stop of the car Burgess was riding in wasn’t unreasonably extended by the officer’s asking the passengers for identification and running records checks on them.

State v. Charles W. Richey, petition to review a per curiam opinion granted 4/13/22; case activity (including briefs)

Question presented:

Whether, at the time of the stop, Officer Meier only had a generalized hunch that Richey’s motorcycle may have been the one that committed a traffic violation.

State v. Christopher Antonje Tek, 2021AP1112-Cr, 3/31/22, District 4, (1-judge opinion, ineligible for publication); case activity (including briefs).

About 45 seconds into a traffic stop, Officer Rocha placed Tek in handcuffs and continued his investigation of a possible OWI.  Ten minutes later, Rocha took Tek to jail and arrested him. Tek argued that he was arrested–without probable cause–when Rocha cuffed him.  The court of appeals disagreed. It held that Rocha had reasonable suspicion to investigate a possible crime, and his use of handcuffs did not transform Tek’s detention into an arrest.

State v. Jere J. Meddaugh, 2022 WI App 12; case activity (including briefs)

Wearing black clothing and riding a bicycle across publicly accessible school grounds in the middle of the night while a Safer at Home order is in effect does not constitute reasonable suspicion that a crime is being committed. So says the court of appeals in a decision that is recommended for publication.