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On Point is a judicial analysis blog written by members of the Wisconsin State Public Defenders. It includes cases from the Wisconsin Court of Appeals, Supreme Court of Wisconsin, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
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TPR – opinion testimony by case manager
State v. Gloria C., 2012AP1693 and 2012AP1694, District 1, 2/5/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity Trial counsel was not ineffective for failing to object to the opinion testimony of the parent’s ongoing case manager, who said that based on the parent’s conduct in the preceding two years, she would not […]
Ineffective assistance of counsel; “new factor” based sentence modification
State v. Stephen Lehman, 2011AP2821-CR, District I (not recommended for publication). Case activity. Lehman pled guilty to 2 counts of burglary of a dwelling. The trial court sentenced him to 5 years of initial confinement and 3 years of extended supervision for each count. The court ran the sentences consecutively, ordered Lehman to pay […]
Indiana ban on sex offenders using social networking and social media sites violates First Amendment
Doe v. Prosecutor, Marion County, Indiana, Case No. 12-2512, 1/23/13; Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals decision A recent Indiana statute prohibits most registered sex offenders from using social networking websites, instant messaging services, and chat programs. John Doe, on behalf of a class of similarly situated sex offenders, challenges this law on First Amendment grounds. […]
Disorderly conduct, § 947.01 — sufficiency of the evidence
State v. William G. Bennett, 2012AP1757-CR, District 2, 1/30/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge; ineligible for publication); case activity Evidence that Bennett sent a lewd and obscene letter to a person was sufficient to support conviction for disorderly conduct because the content of the letter placed it beyond a mere “personal annoyance” to the victim. […]
OWI – reopening case improperly treated as a first offense
State v. James A. Krahn, 2012AP1898-CR, District 2, 1/30/13; court of appeals decision (1-judge, ineligible for publication); case activity Motion to dismiss second-offense OWI charge was properly denied, where the charge resulted from the state’s successful motion to reopen a conviction for a first offense that had been entered a few weeks after a conviction […]
Denial of fair trial – restraint of defendant during trial; sentencing – reliance on inaccurate information; new factor
State v. Richard Wade Shirley, 2012AP263-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity Denial of fair trial – restraint of defendant during trial Defendant forfeited claim that he was deprived of a fair trial because at least one juror saw he was shackled in the court room: “Not only […]
Terry stop — reasonable suspicion; DNA surcharge — exercise of discretion; sentence credit — time between revocation and return to prison
State v. Manuel R. Williams, 2012AP357-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity Terry stop – reasonable suspicion Police had reasonable suspicion to stop defendant where, based on suppression hearing testimony, circuit court found that: the officers were sent to a shooting in “a high risk area”; when police […]
Confession – consideration of truthfulness of confession when deciding voluntariness
State v. Douglas H. Stream, Case No. 2011AP2051, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity The circuit court properly denied the defendant’s Wis. Stat. § 974.06 postconviction motion, which claimed that his trial lawyer was ineffective for not objecting to references to the truthfulness of his confession during a […]
Denial of right to self-representation — competence to represent oneself; search and seizure — probable cause, automobile exception
State v. Robert L. Tatum, Case No. 2011AP2439-CR, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity Denial of right to self-representation – competence to represent oneself The circuit court properly denied Tatum the right to represent himself based on his limited education and understanding of legal procedures, as evidenced by […]
Sentence modification — post-sentencing assistance to law enforcement
State v. John Doe, 2012AP414-CR, District 1, 1/23/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity The circuit court properly exercised its discretion in denying the defendant’s motion for sentence modification based on his assistance to law enforcement. The circuit court considered the factors established by State v. Doe, 2005 WI App 68, […]
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On Point provides information (not legal advice) about important developments in the law. Please note that this information may not be up to date. Viewing this blog does not create an attorney-client relationship with the Wisconsin State Public Defender. Readers should consult an attorney for their legal needs.