Sexually Violent Persons — discharge date

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Wisconsin Court of Appeals

Criminal

Sexually Violent Persons — discharge date

Where a Chapter 980 petition was filed before the defendant’s maximum discharge date, it was timely filed.

“Stanley suggests that this court’s decision in Thomas forecloses our conclusion that the WIS. STAT. ch. 980 petition was timely filed. Stanley fails to acknowledge a fundamental factual difference between his case and Thomas, specifically, that the ch. 980 petition in Thomas was filed after Thomas had reached his maximum discharge date, while the ch. 980 petition in Stanley’s case was filed before Stanley reached his maximum discharge date. Our discussion in Thomas centered on the fact that Thomas had reached his maximum discharge date before the State filed the ch. 980 petition, and we explained: The petition against Thomas was filed three days after he was discharged from his criminal sentence. The State does not point to an administrative code section or statute allowing it to detain Thomas beyond his sentence’s discharge date in order to file a WIS. STAT. ch. 980 petition, and we hold that it was without authority to do so. Thomas, 238 Wis. 2d 216, ¶17. Unlike in Thomas, DOC did not detain Stanley beyond his maximum discharge date in order to allow the State to file the ch. 980 petition. Instead, the State filed the ch. 980 petition in January 2010, approximately two months before Stanley’s March 2010 maximum discharge date. Accordingly, Thomas does not foreclose our conclusion that the ch. 980 petition in this case was timely filed.”

Reversed and Remanded.

Recommended for publication in the official reports.

2013AP2477 State v. Stanley

Dist. IV, Sauk County, Taggart, J., Kloppenburg, J.

Attorneys: For Appellant: Weise, Rebecca R., Madison; Remington, Christine A., Madison; For Respondent: Breedlove, Tristan, Madison