Justia Wisconsin Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

After a jury trial in 1982, Defendant and his brother were found guilty of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. In 2014, Defendant filed a motion requesting forensic DNA testing of evidence taken from the crime scene pursuant to Wis. Stat. 974.07 and asking the circuit court to order that the testing occur at public expense or, in the alternative, at Defendant’s own expense. The circuit court denied Defendant’s postconviction motion for DNA testing. The court of appeals reversed and remanded the case for forensic DNA testing at private or public expense. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the circuit court did not err in denying Defendant’s postconviction motion for forensic DNA testing, as the requirements of section 974.07(7)(a)2 were not met. View "State v. Denny" on Justia Law

Voces de la Frontera (Voces) submitted a public records request to Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke Jr. seeking all immigration detainer forms (I-247 forms) that the Sheriff received from the United States Immigrations and Customs Enforcement since November 2014. The I-247 forms contained immigration-related information about certain individuals held at the Milwaukee County Jail. Voces then filed a petition for a writ of mandamus seeking to compel the Sheriff to produce the I-247 forms. The circuit court granted the writ and ordered the Sheriff to produce unredacted versions of the I-247 forms. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the I-247 forms were statutorily exempt from disclosure under Wisconsin public records law. View "Voces de la Frontera, Inc. v. Clarke" on Justia Law

Petitioner pleaded no contest to one count of burglary as a party to a crime. The judgment of conviction provided that Petitioner submit to a DNA sample and pay a $250 DNA analysis surcharge. At the time Petitioner committed the offense Wis. Stat. 973.046, which provided that the decision of whether to impose a DNA surcharge was within the circuit court’s discretion, was in effect. Thereafter, Wis. Stat. 973.046(1r)(a) took effect. When Petitioner was sentenced, the amended statute made the imposition of a DNA surcharge mandatory. Petitioner filed a postconviction motion seeking to vacate the $250 DNA surcharge, arguing that imposing the mandatory DNA surcharge violated the Ex Post Facto Clauses of the state and federal Constitutions because imposition of the DNA surcharge was discretionary at the time she committed the offense. The circuit court denied the postconviction motion. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Petitioner did not meet her burden of establishing beyond a reasonable doubt that the amended statute is unconstitutional. View "State v. Scruggs" on Justia Law

After a bench trial, Defendant was convicted of first-degree reckless homicide for delivering heroin that caused the death of S.L. Defendant appealed, arguing that the admission of a toxicology report at trial through a medical examiner’s testimony, without testimony by the analyst who signed it, violated his confrontation rights. The court of appeals certified the case to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court held that the admission and use at trial of the toxicology report did not violate Defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to confrontation because the toxicology report as not “testimonial” under the primary purpose test set forth by the United States Supreme Court in Ohio v. Clark. In so holding, the Court overruled State v. VanDyke, which reached the opposite conclusion. View "State v. Mattox" on Justia Law

Defendant entered a no contest plea to homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and injury by intoxicated use of a vehicle resulting in great bodily harm. When sentencing Defendant, the sentencing court considered the fact that Defendant had previously successfully completed supervision in a case where the record of conviction had been expunged. Defendant filed a postconviction motion requesting a new sentencing hearing, arguing that the circuit court erred when it considered his expunged record of conviction at sentencing. The circuit court denied Defendant’s motion for resentencing. The court of appeals affirmed, determining that under State v. Leitner, a sentencing court is permitted to consider all of the facts underlying an expunged record of conviction, and not only those facts underlying the crime itself. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the sentencing court did not abuse its discretion when it considered the fact that Defendant had previously successfully completed supervision in a case where the record of conviction had been expunged. View "State v. Allen" on Justia Law

Defendant pled no contest to one count of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, in violation of Wis. Stat. 346.63(1)(a), second offense. Defendant appealed, arguing, inter alia, that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress. The court of appeals reversed and remanded the case to the circuit court to suppress the evidence obtained from Defendant’s blood, concluding that the evidence was insufficient to establish that the emergency medical technician (EMT) who drew Defendant’s blood was operating “under the direction of a physician” as required by Wis. Stat. 343.305(5)(b). The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the EMT who drew Defendant’s blood was a “person acting under the direction of a physician” and that Defendant’s blood was drawn in a constitutionally reasonable manner. View "State v. Kozel" on Justia Law

This medical malpractice case was based on the claim that Dr. Kim Balink was negligent in the prenatal care of Braylon Seifert’s mother and in Braylon’s delivery. The jury returned a special verdict finding that Dr. Balink was negligent in the delivery of Braylon and in the prenatal care of Braylon and that this negligence was a cause of injury to Braylon. The circuit court entered judgment for Braylon for $135,000 in medical expenses and $750,000 in pain and suffering. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the circuit court did not err in applying Wis. Stat. 907.02(1) and admitting as reliable Braylon’s obstetrical expert witness’s expert medical testimony on the standard of reasonable care based on his personal experience; (2) the circuit court did not err in concluding that Braylon’s counsel’s remarks during closing argument did not constitute prejudicial error justifying a new trial; and (3) a new trial should not be granted in the interests of justice. View "Seifert v. Balink" on Justia Law

The research director for the Democratic Party of Wisconsin submitted a public records request to the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) requesting certain documents and recordings of presentations made at various training programs. The DOJ identified two records responsive to the request - two video recordings - but refused to release the recordings after concluding that the public interest in nondisclosure outweighed the general presumption favoring release. The Democratic Party petitioned the circuit court for a writ of mandamus seeking release of the records. The circuit court ordered both recordings disclosed. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the legislative presumption in favor of disclosure was outweighed by the public harm that would result from disclosure. View "Democratic Party of Wisconsin v. Wisconsin Department of Justice" on Justia Law

Regency West Apartments sued the City of Racine to recover refunds from allegedly excessive taxation for tax years 2012 and 2013. The circuit court dismissed Regency West’s claims. The court of appeals affirmed. At issue before the Supreme Court was whether the City’s appraisals of Regency West’s property complied with Wisconsin law. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) the valuation methodologies the City used for the assessments at issue did not comply with Wisconsin law; (2) the lower courts erred in concluding that Regency West failed to overcome the presumption of correctness for the 2012 and 2013 tax assessments; and (3) Regency West proved that the City’s tax assessments for the tax years at issue were excessive. Remanded to the circuit court to calculate the amount of Regency West’s refund. View "Regency West Apartments LLC v. City of Racine" on Justia Law

Defendant was convicted of drunk driving, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia. The court of appeals reversed the circuit court’s order denying Defnednat’s motion to suppress, concluding that the warrantless entry by a deputy with the sheriff’s department into Defendant’s garage was not justified by the exigent circumstance of the deputy’s “hot pursuit” of a fleeing suspect who had committed jailable offenses. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the deputy’s warrantless entry into Defendant’s garage and subsequent arrest of Defendant were constitutional because they were justified by the exigent circumstance of hot pursuit of a fleeing suspect who had committed jailable offenses. View "State v. Weber" on Justia Law