Cedric Leon Barefield, Jr., appeals from a judgment of conviction for eight armed robberies. The issue is whether the evidence found during a search of the apartment where Barefield was staying should have been suppressed because police did not have a search warrant. We conclude that the violation of a probation warrant issued to take Barefield into custody was sufficient to justify that search pursuant to State v. Pittman, 159 Wis. 2d 764, 772, 465 N.W.2d 245 (Ct. App. 1990). Therefore, we...  

Heath N. Wasserman appeals from a judgment of conviction for one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon contrary to WIS. STAT. § 941.29(2)(a) (2005-06).2 The judgment was entered pursuant to a negotiated no-contest plea dated October 16, 2006, after the original charge was dismissed because of a missing witness. When reissued, the new trial court took judicial notice of the original court's findings in the suppression motion. Wasserman contends that the trial court erred by...  

Donald Vermaat appeals a judgment of conviction on one count of sexual assault of a child under age thirteen and an order denying his motion for postconviction relief. Vermaat contends he received ineffective assistance of counsel. He also asserts the trial court impermissibly limited his cross-examination of a witness. Because we conclude counsel was not deficient and the trial court did not err, we affirm the judgment and order... Background... ¶ 2 Vermaat went to live with his father,...  

Vincent Evelyn Ray appeals from an order denying his postconviction motion seeking to modify his sentence. Ray asserts two grounds for appeal. First, he claims that the trial court's sentence imposing consecutive rather than concurrent time was unduly harsh. Second, he claims that his worsening health and his belief that he cannot obtain the health care he needs in prison constitute a new factor warranting sentence modification, and the trial court erred by not holding a hearing on his...  

George J. Key, Jr., appeals the judgment, entered following a jury trial, convicting him of two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety while armed, one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, and one count of possession of a short-barreled shotgun, all as a habitual criminal, contrary to WIS. STAT. §§ 941.30(1), 939.63, 941.29(2), 941.28(2), and 939.62 (2003-04), respectively.1 Key also appeals from the order denying his postconviction motion. Key argues that his...  

Laura Young appeals a circuit court order dismissing her insurer, West Bend Mutual Insurance Company ("West Bend"), as a party to Young's negligence action. Young was injured while riding as a passenger on a motorcycle driven by her boyfriend, Jeffrey Ramczyk. Young averred that she had purchased the motorcycle for Ramczyk, but retained title to it for reasons explained later. The circuit court, construing the so-called "drive other car" exclusion1 to Young's policy, concluded...  

Ronald Lane appeals a judgment convicting him of one count of burglary, as a repeater and as a party to a crime, and an order denying his motion for postconviction relief. He argues that the police violated the Fourth Amendment when they stopped him and that the circuit court erred in conducting a restitution hearing without him. We affirm... ¶ 2 Lane first argues that the police did not have a reasonable suspicion to stop him. "[A]lthough an investigative stop is technically a...  

Daniel A. Knueppel appeals judgments convicting him of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of an intoxicant in violation of WIS. STAT. § 346.63(1)(a) and of operating a motor vehicle with a prohibited alcohol concentration in violation of WIS. STAT. § 346.63(1)(b). He contends that the circuit court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence because the arresting officer lacked a reasonable suspicion to stop his vehicle. We disagree and affirm the judgments......  

The issue on this appeal is whether the arresting officers violated Timothy Neitzel's Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches when they unlocked a gas station restroom he occupied. The resolution of this issue turns on whether Neitzel has standing to assert this claim. We conclude Neitzel did not have standing because, at the time the officers unlocked the door, he did not have an expectation of privacy that society is willing to recognize as reasonable... ¶ 2...  

Antonio Owens appeals judgments convicting him of being a felon in possession of a firearm, carrying a concealed weapon, obstructing an officer, and mistreatment of an animal. He also appeals the order denying his postconviction motion. The issues are whether he received effective assistance from his trial counsel, and whether he should receive a new trial in the interest of justice. We affirm... ¶ 2 Owens was with a group of people gathered on a porch at 2522 West Legion Street in...  

Robert Lins appeals a judgment convicting him of one count of second-degree sexual assault with use of force, one count of false imprisonment, and one count of misdemeanor battery. He also appeals an order denying his motion for postconviction relief. He argues that he did not knowingly waive his right to counsel and that the circuit court erred in sentencing him based on disputed factual information without giving him an opportunity to rebut it. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand...  

Steven Smith appeals a judgment convicting him of one count of second-degree recklessly endangering safety, one count of maintaining a drug trafficking place, one count of possession of cocaine with intent to deliver between 5 and 15 grams, and one count of possession of cocaine with intent to deliver between 15 and 40 grams. He also appeals an order denying his motion for postconviction relief. We affirm... ¶ 2 Smith contends that the circuit court compromised his right to a unanimous...  

This is an appeal of a nonfinal order dismissing on summary judgment Joseph Henrikson's claim for punitive damages in this action alleging negligent driving by Nicolas Strapon. Henrikson contends the circuit court applied an incorrect legal standard regarding punitive damages and, when the correct standard is applied, there is evidence that entitles him to a jury trial on punitive damages. In particular, Henrikson asserts the following evidence shows that Strapon acted in intentional disregard...  

Nelson Garcia, Jr., appeals a judgment convicting him of one count of first-degree sexual assault of a child. He also appeals the order denying him postconviction relief. In his postconviction motion, Garcia alleged that he did not enter a knowing, voluntary, and intelligent plea to the charge, and that he received ineffective assistance from his trial counsel. On appeal, he challenges the trial court's decision to deny those claims without a hearing. We conclude that a hearing on the...  

Barry J. Smith, Sr., appeals from a circuit court order imposing a civil forfeiture for fishing without a valid fishing license contrary to WIS. STAT. § 29.024(1). Smith's citation was based on the fact that the annual license he purchased in July 2006 had expired in March 2007, the expiration date indicated on the face of the license. Smith requests this court to determine the meaning of "annual" to mean twelve months from the time of issue. Smith is essentially challenging the...  

The State appeals from an order granting Aaron E. Applewhite's motion to suppress evidence seized during a pat-down search. The circuit court held that the pat-down and removal of contraband were not justified and granted the motion to suppress. We conclude the pat-down and confiscation of contraband were proper; therefore, we reverse the order of the circuit court... FACTS AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND... ¶ 2 On March 4, 2007, four Sheboygan police department officers, Brian Bastil, Paul...  

Todd E. Peterson appeals from a judgment and an order arising from his criminal conviction for sexual assault of a child. He contends that the judgment of conviction should be reversed because he received ineffective assistance of counsel at trial and that the court's evidentiary ruling on other acts evidence was error. Peterson also argues that the court improperly removed Peterson's privately retained postconviction counsel over Peterson's objection. We agree. The circuit court erroneously...  

Scott Kurzynski appeals a default judgment entered in favor of the Town of Rib Mountain.1 Kurzynski argues that an error in the summons effectively deprived him of the full statutory time to file an answer. We agree. Because the Town should not benefit from its own error, we reverse the judgment... ¶ 2 On July 3, 2007, the Town filed suit against Kurzynski alleging trespass, common law nuisance and a nuisance ordinance violation. It is undisputed that Kurzynski was personally served with...  

Fahmi Abdallah appeals from a default judgment against him, awarding damages, costs and attorney's fees to Marla Baker, formerly known as Lockridge, on her claims against him for statutory fraudulent representation on a commercial lease agreement. We conclude that the trial court properly exercised its discretion in denying Abdallah's motions to extend the time to answer Baker's complaint and to reopen the default judgment entered against him, and that there was sufficient evidence to support...  

This is an appeal of a conviction for possession of a controlled substance contrary to WIS. STAT. § 961.41(3g)(c) (2005-06)2 based on a guilty plea entered after denial of a motion to suppress the seizure of cocaine which was found in Mr. Triggs' pocket after his admission to possession of drug paraphernalia during an investigative stop. Triggs argues that the police did not have a reasonable suspicion upon which to base the investigative stop, thus the subsequent search was invalid. We...