Wisconsin Law Journal – WI Legal News & Resources Wisconsin Legal News & Resources

The State of Wisconsin appeals from a trial court order dismissing its action against Scott McGuire. McGuire is the licensee for the service of alcoholic beverages at the Sports Page Bar & Grill. The State cited both McGuire and his ...

“In the factual situation before us, the evidence of the wine-making activity of Bogan and Calhoun serves to complete and answer a conceptual void in the history of the crime. To the lay juror, most likely unfamiliar with the manufacturing ...

Lorenzo Balli appeals a judgment convicting him of attempted escape. The issue is whether there was a sufficient factual basis for the conviction. We conclude that there was. Accordingly, we affirm. This opinion will not be published. Dist IV, Columbia ...

“There is no indication that the district court believed that Higgins intended to actually deprive ONB of the full $420,000 he purported to be depositing, as opposed to merely impressing the bank with his importance and then using some smaller ...

“Here, Lane alleges that Niebler acted ‘maliciously’ and ‘[w]ith actual intent to … defraud Lane’ and that Niebler ‘exceeded the bounds of his professional obligation to Sharp and the Scarberrys and became an active participant in … fraudulent activities, acting ...

Duke Jawara appeals a judgment convicting him of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant (OMVWI). The precise nature of Jawara’s claim of error cannot be ascertained from his brief, but it appears that he is ...

“[I]t is clear that the conduct admitted by Garcia in his plea of guilty to Count I of the 1988 Information fits within the parameters of an ‘attempt’ to commit a ‘theft offense.’ The 1988 Information charged Garcia with the ...

“Here, the affidavit of Valentine Glytas establishes the uncontroverted fact that First Financial took the checks at issue in payment of Gittus’s outstanding credit card balances…. Glytas avers that First Financial had no reason to suspect there was any problem ...

Karla R. Merkes appeals a judgment of conviction for causing injury by operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant. She contends the trial court erred in concluding that the officer had probable cause to arrest her. ...

“The district court did not deny her responsibility based solely upon the fact that she told the probation officer that she had never done anything wrong. The district court instead declined to give Frykholm the bargain-rate sentencing discount because she ...

“At issue is whether Kramer’s damages must be reduced by the amount of financial benefit he received by securing new, more lucrative employment during the contract period. Kramer argues that the practical effect of this reduction, which ultimately resulted in ...

Gabriel Zitlow appeals his conviction for possession of marijuana as a party to the crime. He contends that the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress evidence because the arresting officer lacked probable cause to conduct a warrantless ...

“Given the straightforward, unambiguous language of the current Wis. Stat. 102.46, the dependent death benefit provided in that statute may be claimed as of the date of death of the deceased employee whose death proximately resulted from the work injury. ...

Ollie Smith appeals from a judgment convicting him of possession of more than 100 grams of cocaine with intent to deliver, within 1,000 feet of a park, as a repeater. Smith argues that the police illegally expanded the scope of ...

“We agree with the State that Navarro’s allegations could have been considerably more specific, for instance, by identifying specific past incidents involving the correctional officer of which Navarro was aware, or by providing the names of inmates allegedly abused by ...

Larry Sprosty was committed to the Wisconsin Resource Center as a sexually violent person in 1995. His petition for supervised release was later granted, but the circuit court relieved the State from its order when it concluded that new evidence ...

“It is not the prospective jurors’ ‘first introduction to the substantive factual and legal issues in a case.’ [Citation]. And, since the questions are not directed at eliciting information on prospective jurors’ backgrounds, or any other information that might reveal ...

“The first district judge should not have dismissed the case merely because she thought it likely to settle. The right time to dismiss a case is when the dispute between the parties has been definitively and finally resolved, not when ...

And, even assuming, arguendo, that trial counsel’s performance was deficient, that deficiency was not prejudicial and defendant was not, therefore, denied effective assistance of counsel. Judgments and order affirmed. Recommended for publication in the official reports. Dist IV, Vernon County, ...

“Davis’s pleadings in no way indicate that Duchossois was a party to their contract, and indeed specifically state that Duchossois’s own expected participation was not a condition precedent to the Davis/HP oral contract. In addition, the overwhelming deposition testimony establishes ...

“Thus, this language unambiguously articulates categories of custodians whose control over parolees and probationers constitutes actual custody, namely: an institution, peace officer or guard. None of the categories includes probation or parole agents. This has been the implicit understanding of ...

“[I]t is not unreasonable to assume that in 1998-99, five years after the decision in [Helling v. McKinney, 509 U.S. 25 (1993)], prison officials knew or should have known that even though Alvarado was housed with a non-smoking cellmate on ...

This is because plaintiff’s game satisfies all seven provisions of the exemption, including, for example, that no purchase be necessary, that all prizes are randomly awarded, and the sponsor does not misrepresent a participant’s chances of winning any prize. “The ...

“[T]he district court was correct to characterize the Pitts/Lawson complaint as merely a lingering effect of an earlier violation. … [T]he City took only one action for each parcel of land, and each action affected only one person: on particular ...

Randy Eytcheson appeals a judgment declaring Howard Eytcheson’s rights in a boundary dispute and dismissing Randy’s claim for adverse possession. Randy argues that (1) the evidence sufficiently establishes his claim of adverse possession; (2) a fence line establishes his claim; ...

“This case does not fit within the thin middle ground established by [United States v. Berkowitz, 927 F.2d 1376 (7th Cir.1991)], but is a case where [Payton v. New York, 445 U.S. 573 (1980)] applies. What puts this case beyond ...

Terry A. Apel appeals judgments of conviction for homicide, attempted homicide, and conspiracy to commit homicide related to the death of Pamela Schultz, his fiancée’s daughter. Apel contends the trial court erred in denying his motions to suppress the evidence ...

“We believe that the NDP assembly is a ‘civic program or activity,’ as the Village has defined the term, and that the Village’s denial of the plaintiffs’ application to use the Village Hall constitutes viewpoint discrimination. In adopting the philosophical ...

Walter Lockhart appeals a judgment convicting him of substantial battery, as a repeater. He also appeals the order denying him postconviction relief. The issues are whether the trial court erroneously excluded testimony at his jury trial and whether cumulative error ...

“We conclude that the district court’s decision to grant the Post-Tribune’s motion for judgment as a matter of law was in error. The court in granting the Post-Tribune’s motion indicated only that it did not believe that liability could be ...