State v. Benny Burgos, 2024AP1497-CR, 6/3/25, District I (not recommended for publication); case activity In an interesting appeal presenting questions of statutory construction and appellate jurisdiction, COA uses principles of equity to reach the merits and reverses in Burgos’s favor. Burgos was made eligible for SAP at his original sentencing in 2016. (¶2). He enrolled… Read more
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City of Monona v. Erick J. Erickson, 2024AP312, District IV, 5/30/25 (one-judge decision; ineligible for publication); case activity The COA affirmed Erick J. Erickson’s conviction following a bench trial for operating with a prohibited alcohol concentration and revocation of his operating privileges because he unreasonably refused to submit to a preliminary breath test (PBT). COA… Read more
State v. Roger A. Minck, 2022AP2292-CR, 5/28/25, District III (recommended for publication); case activity In a case of first impression, the COA held in a decision recommended for publication that hiding a corpse with intent to conceal a crime under Wis. Stat. § 940.11(2) requires the State to prove the defendant intended to conceal any… Read more
State v. Peter J. Long, 2024AP1249-CR, 5/28/25, District II (not recommended for publication); case activity While Long’s appeal presents some superficially interesting legal issues, ultimately COA’s dereference to the circuit court’s underlying factual findings govern the outcome here. “Alice,” called police to report that her mother was being physically attacked by the defendant, Long. (¶2)… Read more
Wisconsin Judicial Commision v. Honorable Ellen K. Berz, 2024AP2038-J, 5/27/2025, (per curiam judicial discipline case) In a unanimous decision, SCOW agrees that a judge’s “intemperate” response to an adjournment request and attempt to personally arrest a criminal defendant violated the applicable rules and merited the sanction of suspension without pay. Here, the Court reviews misconduct… Read more
State v. Donaven C. Sprague, 2022AP876-CR, 5/20/25, District III (not recommended for publication), case activity In the second defense win this week on appeal from a Barron County conviction (see Wooldridge), the COA vacated Donaven Sprague’s sentence to 10 years of initial confinement for repeated sexual assault of a child because the State breached its… Read more
March was another slow month, but brought a couple of cases potentially relevant to our practice with respect to a delayed search of a cell phone, the use of suggestive lineups, the constitutionality of laws governing short-barreled rifles, and an argument that the Sixth Amendment applies to criminal restitution orders: United States of America v… Read more
Jacob Alan Powers v. Jon Noble, No. 24-2134, 3/25/25 The Seventh Circuit found that Jacob Powers was competent to stand trial in a Wisconsin court in 2006 for sexual assault of a child and child enticement. Although Powers’ IQ was in the borderline/mild mental retardation range; his trial testimony, trial counsel’s decision not to challenge… Read more
