Recent Articles from Amelia Bizzaro
ON APPEAL: Which writ depends on decision you want to challenge
Appellate and post-conviction practice is not just limited to direct appeals, §974.06 motions or motions to modify a sentence. Several decisions are reviewable in state court by either a petition for writ of certiorari or a petition for writ of habeas corpus. The question of which to do when depends on the type of decision you seek to challenge.
ON APPEAL: Court clarifies test for sentence modification
Before the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s decision in State v. Harbor, 2011 WI 28 on May 10, the test for seeking a sentence modification based on a new factor was a little bit muddled. The Wisconsin Supreme Court used Harbor to clarify it.
ON APPEAL: Walker’s budget impact on prison sentences
To say that Governor Scott Walker’s proposed biennial budget has gotten a little attention is a huge understatement. But little attention has focused on the immediate impact it will have on inmates serving sentences in Wisconsin prisons.
ON APPEAL: Motion for sentence modification tolls AEDPA
The timeline for filing a petition for writ of habeas corpus in federal court challenging a state conviction is governed by the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA). Recently, the United States Supreme Court addressed whether a state inmate’s challenge to his sentence tolls the deadline.
ON APPEAL: Challenge evidence that doesn’t meet Daubert test
On Jan. 31, 2011, the Legislature did something that the Wisconsin courts have resisted for years. It made Wisconsin a Daubert state for the purposes of admitting expert testimony.
High court to tackle ineffective assistance
This month, the U.S. Supreme Court granted cert in two related plea cases addressing ineffective assistance of counsel, Lafler v. Cooper (No. 10-2009) and Missouri v. Frye (No. 10-444).
Discourage clients from no-merit option
Last month I discussed when appointed counsel should give the required no-merit advice. But what should attorneys do when clients ask the inevitable question: “What do you think I should do?” On the whole, attorneys should discourage clients from choosing the no-merit report option. Six months ago, Justice Prosser authored the decision in State v. […]
No merit doesn’t mean no problem
The no-merit report procedure laid out in WIS. STAT. (RULE) 809.32 applies only to appointed counsel on direct appeal. The process can be confusing, but when to start it should not be.
Court unhappy with citation problems
Over the summer, the Court of Appeals issued four decisions involving criminal cases, both published and unpublished, sanctioning counsel for various infractions. In one decision, the Court sanctioned counsel from both parties. What piqued the Court's ire the most were false appendix certifications and, in one case, missing record citations.
Legal News
- Wisconsin attorney loses law license, ordered to pay $16K fine
- Former Wisconsin police officer charged with 5 bestiality felony counts
- Judge reject’s Trump’s bid for a new trial in $83.3 million E. Jean Carroll defamation case
- Dozens of deaths reveal risks of injecting sedatives into people restrained by police
- The Latest: Supreme Court arguments conclude in Trump immunity case
- Net neutrality restored as FCC votes to regulate internet providers
- Wisconsin Attorney General asks Congress to expand reproductive health services
- Attorney General Kaul releases update at three-year anniversary of clergy and faith leader abuse initiative
- State Bar leaders remain deeply divided over special purpose trust
- Former Wisconsin college chancellor fired over porn career is fighting to keep his faculty post
- Pecker says he pledged to be Trump campaign’s ‘eyes and ears’ during 2016 race
- A conservative quest to limit diversity programs gains momentum in states
WLJ People
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Russell Nicolet
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Benjamin Nicolet
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Dustin T. Woehl
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Katherine Metzger
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Joseph Ryan
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – James M. Ryan
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Dana Wachs
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Mark L. Thomsen
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Matthew Lein
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Jeffrey A. Pitman
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – William Pemberton
- Power 30 Personal Injury Attorneys – Howard S. Sicula