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CRITIC’S CORNER: Defense of jury instruction 140 falls flat
Wisconsin’s criminal jury instruction 140 describes the prosecutor’s burden of proof as “beyond a reasonable doubt.” However, it then contradicts itself by telling the jury “not to search for doubt” but instead “to search for the truth.”
CRITIC’S CORNER: ‘Mistakes were made’: A reply to Michael Griesbach
Wisconsin prosecutor Michael Griesbach recently wrote, “To be sure, mistakes were made in the Avery case.”
CRITIC’S CORNER: Critical omissions in ‘Making a Murderer’?
Whenever I write a motion or a brief on behalf of a client, it inevitably requires that I quote language from a published case, the criminal complaint, or some other document.
Anything you say (or don’t say) can be used against you
When confronted by the police, innocent suspects often want to talk in order to clear up things on the spot. But in many cases, the police will only hear what they want to hear, and will spin an innocent person’s denial into evidence of guilt.
CRITIC’S CORNER: Weird science in Wisconsin courts
Steven Avery was convicted of murder in 2007. At his trial, the state called numerous scientific experts to help seal his fate. Then, a few years later, Wisconsin adopted the stricter Daubert standard for the admissibility of expert testimony. Had this supposedly tougher standard been in effect earlier, how would it have affected Avery’s trial?
CRITIC’S CORNER: Law schools, lawyers, and dead philosophers
Many law schools have let their students down over the past decade.
CRITIC’S CORNER: Wisconsin courts as ‘superlegislatures’
Wisconsin courts have a long history of acting as a “superlegislature” and ignoring — and even contradicting — the Legislature’s words when doing so benefits the state.
CRITIC’S CORNER: Convicting Dassey: Five easy steps to a false confession
The trouble with torture as an interrogation tactic is that the suspect will say whatever the interrogator wants to hear — regardless of whether it’s true. Unfortunately, this problem also plagues today’s softer, more sophisticated interrogation tactics.
CRITIC’S CORNER: All ‘Riled’ Up: SCOW flops on ethics rule 1.9
In two previous columns I’ve discussed my rule 1.9 petition (written with my fellow attorney Terry Rose and supported by the attorneys Rob and Ellen Henak), in which I asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to amend ethics rule 1.9.
CRITIC’S CORNER: The truth (about jury instruction 140) is out there
In my column from March, I wrote about Wisconsin’s criminal jury instruction 140. This instruction explains the notion of reasonable doubt, but then, strangely, concludes by telling jurors “not to search for doubt” when rendering their verdict but instead “to search for the truth.”
CRITIC’S CORNER: Convicting Avery (and overturning Denny)
The wildly popular Netflix documentary “Making a Murderer” chronicles the two convictions of Steven Avery. The bulk of the documentary concentrated on Avery’s second case — his trial for the murder of Teresa Halbach — in which there was a great deal of evidence that someone else, other than Avery, committed the crime.
Open letter to next State Bar president-elect: Lawyers should be allowed to discuss public aspects of closed cases
The next president of the Wisconsin State Bar, Paul Swanson, has promised to serve the organization's members in a variety of ways. I take him at his word, and am writing this open letter to suggest a starting point.
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- Wisconsin Court System’s director of public information officer retires abruptly
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- The most prevalent forms of cyber crime (CHART)
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- Bipartisan group of Wisconsin lawmakers propose ranked-choice voting and top-five primaries
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WLJ People
- Evers appoints McElroy as Price County district attorney
- Evers appoints Ann Peacock to Dane County Circuit Court
- Michael Best appoints Sarah Alt to new role as chief process and AI officer
- Attorney Peter Baziano joins Murphy Desmond in its Business and Real Estate practice groups
- GRGB partner Karnes honored at Run for Justice
- DeWitt’s Miotke reappointed to SPD’s Board
- Hupy and Abraham wins award for ‘Behind the Handlebars’ video series
- Evers appoints trio to Milwaukee County Circuit Court
- Kubiak joins Amundsen Davis’ Business Litigation Service Group
- GRGB partners Jason Luczak, Nicole Masnica honored with Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers award
- Teuta Jonuzi, Joshua Hargrove promoted to equity partners at Tracey Wood & Associates
- Reinhart’s Taggatz joins International Association of Defense Counsel
