Certification Question – Guilty-plea-waiver Rule

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WI Supreme Court

Case Name: State of Wisconsin v. Jacob Richard Beyer

Case No.: 2021 WI 59

Focus: Certification Question – Guilty-plea-waiver Rule

This case is before us on certification from the court of appeals pursuant to Wis. Stat. § (Rule) 809.61 (2019-20). The certified issue is: “whether the guilty-plea-waiver rule applies when a defendant pleads not guilty to an offense, but stipulates to the inculpatory facts supporting each element of the offense, and explicitly agrees to a finding of guilt at a hearing before the circuit court at which no witness testifies.”

We conclude that the occurrence in the circuit court, while not a guilty plea made in the customary mode, also was not a court trial. We further conclude that, while parties may stipulate to facts for purposes of a criminal trial, trials based on stipulated facts and a stipulated finding of guilt are not permissible in Wisconsin. Finally, we conclude that Beyer cannot be held to the stipulation he entered in circuit court because he entered it relying on a procedure that we conclude is invalid. Therefore, this matter is remanded to the circuit court so that Beyer can choose whether to enter a plea or proceed to trial. Accordingly, we reverse and remand to the circuit court for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Reversed and remanded

Concur:

Dissent:

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Derek A Hawkins is Corporate Counsel, at Salesforce.