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This case is unusual, moreover, in that the risk of serious harm was not only, perhaps not even mainly, to Woodall, the person in custody, but also to Ridgway, the police officer. Unless Ridgway was suicidal or insane, neither of which possibility is suggested, he would not have failed to take additional precautions against the car crash and ensuing struggle ...

“We agree that towns have only the powers delegated to them, and they exercise zoning power pursuant to the general zoning statutes. [citation]. Nevertheless, § 293.41 is an express delegation to towns of the power to enter into local agreements with mining companies. Section 293.41 is also more recent and more specific than the general zoning statutes and therefore creates ...

Michael M., pro se, appeals a judgment of conviction of two counts of first-degree sexual assault of a child, each count enhanced for sexual assault by a person responsible for the welfare of the child under sec. 948.02(3m), and one count of incest with a child. He also appeals an order denying his motion for postconviction relief. On appeal, Michael ...

“The Supreme Court has held that all policy-making officials, and some others, may be required on pain of dismissal to give both public and private support to the political agenda of those who hold elected office, and their top appointees. The Court has yet to articulate a rule for how far this circle of conformity extends, but it includes all ...

The Calvary Covenant Church appeals an order admitting to probate the 1992 will of Ebba Erickson. The church argues that the trial court erroneously admitted the 1992 will to probate because (1) it was barred by estoppel and laches; (2) Marie Nyquist, a niece and heir under the will, should not have been permitted to testify; (3) Nyquist’s testimony was ...

“Vukadinovich failed to comply with Principal Larson’s directives. Principal Larson directed Vukadinovich to submit his lesson plan book and identify how it complied with state qualifications five times and also made Additional Directives to him. Vukadinovich refused to comply with at least three of these directives, made half-hearted attempts to comply with the other two, ignored Principal Larson’s Additional Directives, ...

Local 236 Laborers International Union of North America, AFL-CIO appeals a circuit court order which confirmed an arbitration decision concerning a grievance by Local 236 member Walter Dyer against his employer, the City of Madison, Engineering Division. The Union claims the arbitrator disregarded the plain language of the overtime pay provisions at issue. We disagree and affirm. This opinion will ...

“[T]he legislative history of the 1986 amendments, in particular that accompanying the whistleblower provision, makes it likely that the Congress, when voting on the amendments, was aware that the FCA might reach municipalities. The Senate Judiciary Committee’s report states that ‘[t]he False Claims Act reaches all parties who may submit false claims. The term “person” is used in its broad ...

Polk County appeals an order dismissing its complaint against Jeff and Dawn Blanski for violating Polk County, Wis., Shoreland Protection Zoning Ordinances, art. XII, sec. 12.3B (1991). The ordinance prohibits more than one dwelling on a property. A violation is punishable by a forfeiture. A jury found that the Blanskis had not violated the ordinance. The County argues that the ...

“It turns out that whoever wrote the Dictionary believes that basic literacy (defined as a vocabulary of 2,500 words, the ability to read about 100 words a minute, and the ability to print simple sentences) is essential for every job in the economy, and that janitors require a higher level (the ability to read about 200 words per minute). See ...

The plaintiffs in a personal injury action appeal a judgment dismissing their complaint. The issue is whether the circuit court properly granted summary judgment to the defendants because their allegedly negligent actions were discretionary acts of public officials and thus immune from suit. We conclude that they were and thus affirm. This opinion will not be published. Dist IV, Dane ...

“The evidence, which suggested the defendant was attempting to protect Hamas and Rezeq Saleh, came only in response and in answer to the defendant’s explanation. In the government’s case-in- chief, the evidence only explained the general nature of the grand jury investigation. Reference was again made to Hamas when the government presented evidence of the defendant’s refusal to testify on ...

Steven Derkson has appealed from a judgment awarding him $343,850 in damages and costs following a jury trial. Judgment was entered against the respondent, Troy Haarstick. The judgment dismissed Derkson’s claims against two other respondents, Holiday Inn Sun Spree Resort (the resort) and its insurer, Northbrook Property & Casualty. We affirm the judgment. This opinion will not be published. Dist ...

“Determining the forfeitable proceeds of an offense does not come within Apprendi’s rule, because there is no ‘prescribed statutory maximum’ and no risk that the defendant has been convicted de facto of a more serious offense. Section 853(a) is open-ended; all property representing the proceeds of drug offenses is forfeitable. Forfeiture has long been a civil remedy as well as ...

Carrie K. Elmer appeals a judgment of conviction entered after a jury found her guilty of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license. At trial, Elmer attempted to show that she had not operated the vehicle and that, instead, she had switched seats with the intoxicated driver after police had stopped them. ...

“The record is devoid of evidence establishing that Peters acted knowingly. Again, there was no evidence presented regarding Barbara’s physical state prior to 10:30 p.m., nor was there any evidence presented suggesting when, between 10:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m., the sexual act occurred. … It is not rational to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that because Barbara appeared intoxicated when ...

Christopher Russell appeals a judgment convicting him of one count of possession of THC, second offense. He also appeals the order denying his motion for postconviction relief. Russell argues that because the State failed to file an information, the circuit court was deprived of subject matter jurisdiction to accept his plea, impose sentence or enter a judgment of conviction. We ...

Three considerations, in combination, lead to the conclusion that the asserted state grounds are inadequate to block adjudication of Lee’s federal claim. First, when the trial judge denied Lee’s motion, he stated a reason that could not have been countered by a perfect motion for continuance: He said he could not carry the trial over until the next day because ...

Robert Christophel appeals, pro se, from a judgment entered on his guilty pleas convicting him of battery, see Wis. Stat. § 940.19(1), and resisting a law-enforcement officer, see Wis. Stat. § 946.41(1). The judgment of conviction was signed on Feb. 15, 2000, (the filing stamp of the office of the Milwaukee County Clerk shows a “filing” date of Feb. 12, ...

Hendricks referred to the Act as requiring an abnormality or disorder that makes it “difficult, if not impossible, for the [dangerous] person to control his dangerous behavior.” Id., at 358. The word “difficult” indicates that the lack of control was not absolute. Indeed, an absolutist approach is unworkable and would risk barring the civil commitment of highly dangerous persons suffering ...

Richard W. Delaney appeals from a judgment of conviction and sentence for operating while intoxicated (OWI), third offense. Richard first argues that the trial court erroneously denied his motion to suppress a statement of confession given to the police prior to receiving a Miranda warning. Richard contends that his statement that he was the driver of a car involved in ...

The plaintiffs in a personal injury action appeal a judgment dismissing their complaint. The issue is whether the circuit court properly granted summary judgment to the defendants because their allegedly negligent actions were discretionary acts of public officials and thus immune from suit. We conclude that they were and thus affirm. This opinion will not be published. Dist IV, Dane ...

David A.H. appeals a judgment convicting him of repeated sexual assault of the same child and attempted second-degree assault of a child. He also appeals an order denying his motion for postconviction relief. The sole issue is the exclusion of a defense expert witness from trial. We conclude that the trial court properly exercised its discretion when precluding the witness ...

The Court concluded that the absence of a signature on a notice of appeal filed by a pro se appellant does not compel dismissal of the appeal. While a notice of appeal must be signed, ‘if the notice is timely filed and adequate in other respects, jurisdiction will vest in the court of appeals [and] the case may proceed so ...

Dennis Denure appeals from a judgment of conviction for operating a motor vehicle with a prohibited blood alcohol concentration. Denure argues that the circuit court erred when it denied his motion to suppress evidence obtained after a subpoena was issued under Wis. Stat. § 968.135. He contends that probable cause does not support the subpoena. We agree and therefore reverse. ...

“The State argues that ‘Espinoza’s denial of involvement in a crime which there is probable cause to believe he committed, as a matter of law, establishes probable cause that he also committed the crime of o[b]structing.’ This broad, sweeping contention disregards the principle of Peters [v. State, 70 Wis.2d 22], which states that before a charge is made under Wis. ...

“[W]e acknowledge that under former SCR 21.03(5), which was in effect at the time of Hyndman’s revocation, it was expressly stated that the imposition of discipline for misconduct is not intended as a punishment for wrongdoing; rather, discipline is imposed to protect the public, the courts, and the legal profession. Our review of the record in this matter now leads ...

“The criminal code increases the penalty for an offender who commits a crime while possessing, using, or threatening to use a dangerous weapon. Wis. Stat. sec. 939.63. The increased penalty is intended to discourage the use of dangerous weapons in the commission of crimes by creating fear of additional punishment. Logically, the loss of dangerous weapons through forfeiture is also ...

And, in response to the referee’s procedural questions, We believe that the rules contemplate that the referee conducting a hearing on the petition for reinstatement must engage in a full and unrestricted evaluation of the petitioner’s past, present, and predicted future behavior, as well as any other relevant information going to the issue of whether the petitioner has the moral ...

Based on case law and the explicit language of Wis. Stat. Sec. 968.24 that a “law enforcement officer may stop a person in a public place,” we conclude that under Wisconsin law, Terry applies to confrontations between the police and citizens in public places only. For private residences and hotels, in the absence of a warrant, the police must have ...