2010AP369-CR State v. Hansbrough

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Criminal Procedure
Verdict forms; structural error

The failure to provide the jury with a not guilty form for one of the charged offenses is not structural error.
“[T]he timing of the error in this case—after the close of the trial and in conjunction with proper jury instructions—prevented the error from infecting the entire trial. Moreover, the particular facts of this case, including the number of charged offenses and Hansbrough’s defense strategy, allow for the assessment of the error’s effect in the context of the entire trial. See Fulminante, 499 U.S. at 307-08. We therefore conclude that the error in this case is not structural, but rather trial error subject to a harmless error analysis.”

Affirmed.

Recommended for publication in the official reports.

2010AP369-CR State v. Hansbrough

Dist. II, Racine County, Constantine, J., Neubauer, J.

Attorneys: For Appellant: Bizzaro, Amelia L., Milwaukee; For Respondent: Nieskes, Michael E., Racine; Sanders, Michael C., Madison

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