Scott Wales and Kashoua "Kristy" Yang are competing for the Branch 47 judicial seat now held by Milwaukee County Circuit Judge John Siefert, who is not seeking re-election. This is the only contested Milwaukee County judicial race this year. Wales and Yang agreed to answer a series of questions from WJI to better inform voters about issues in the race. This is the final question in the series. This week's question: Why are you the best choice for the job? Editor's note: Scott Wales' response to Kashoua "Kristy" Yang is at the bottom of his answer.
Republicans in the State Legislature are joining a nationwide effort to push for a convention to amend the U.S. Constitution. There is a public hearing on the issue at 10 a.m. tomorrow (March 28) in Madison. So far, 28 states have asked for a convention; 34 are needed. The convention would be called specifically to require the federal government to have a balanced budget, but scholars on both ends of the political spectrum believe a convention can't really be controlled. Amending the Constitution through a convention puts fundamental American rights at risk. Legislative supporters of a convention include State Senators Chris Kapenga, David Craig, Alberta Darling, Sheila Harsdorf, Frank Lasee, Howard Marklein, Stephen Nass, Luther Olsen, Duey Stroebel, Patrick Testin, Thomas Tiffany, and Leah Vukmir; and State Reps. Daniel Knodl, Kathleen Bernier, Tyler August, Mark Born, Edward Brooks, Cindi Duchow, Mary Felzkowski, Cody Horlacher, Rob Hutton, Adam Jarchow, Terry Katsma, Samantha Kerkman, Joel Kleefisch, Dale Kooyenga, Jesse Kremer, Scott Krug, Mike Kuglitsch, Bob Kulp, John Macco, Jeffrey Mursau, Adam Neylon, John Nygren, Kevin Petersen, Warren Petryk, Jessie Rodriguez, Mike Rohrkaste, Joe Sanfelippo, Michael Schraa, Ken Skowronski, Patrick Snyder, John Spiros, David Steffen, Jim Steineke, Rob Summerfield, Rob Swearingen, Jeremy Thiesfeldt, Paul Tittl, Robin Vos, Thomas Weatherston and Chuck Wichgers. The Wisconsin Justice Initiative issued a statement today on why Wisconsin should say "no" to a constitutional convention, which is below. State legislators should reject efforts to convene a convention to amend the U.S. Constitution, an extremely dangerous step that could endanger basic American rights, Constitutional changes proposed through a convention are likely to be harmful reactions to the current political divisions in the country that will only divide the country further. Resolutions calling for a constitutional convention are pending in the State Assembly and State Senate. The Senate’s Committee on Financial Services, Constitution and Federalism and the Assembly Committee on Federalism and Interstate Relations will hold a hearing on the issue at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the State Capitol. The proposed legislation specifically calls for the convention to consider a balanced budget amendment but a State Legislature cannot control what happens or what is considered at a convention. Some 28 states already have approved legislation calling for a convention. Convention proponents need 34. The Wisconsin legislation calls for any delegate who votes for an unauthorized amendment to be replaced, but it’s unclear what impact that would have, if any. Replacement would occur only after a vote is cast, when it is too late to undo any damage. It is also unclear whether convention rules would allow delegate replacements because the rules don’t exist yet. We don’t even know how much representation Wisconsin would have. Scholars from across the spectrum agree that a convention, once convened, is a force unto itself. People who value freedom of speech and freedom of religion should be concerned about what could happen; those who value their Second Amendment rights should be just as worried. We don’t need a constitutional convention, First, a balanced budget amendment could cripple the country’s ability to respond to a national emergency. Second, opening the Constitution to change now would invite mischief and disaster. A bill requiring fifth and sixth offense drunk drivers to serve at least 18 months in prison could cost state taxpayers up to $20 million per year, State Rep. Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee) told an Assembly committee Thursday. Fifth and sixth offense OWI offenders now face minimum prison sentences of six months. Goyke, who emphasized he was not addressing the merits of toughening drunk driving laws, said he developed his cost estimate because the Department of Corrections failed to provide one. Fiscal estimates that estimate the cost of implementing legislation are developed by departments at the direction of the Department of Administration. Goyke suggested the DOC estimate was omitted because the Walker administration did not want to make the costs of the measure public. "That fiscal estimate would have a really, really big number attached to it," he said, adding, "I also don't think this committee should vote on a bill without knowing the cost." For his own estimate, Goyke used conviction data from 2015, when there were 491 fifth offense drunk driving and 223 sixth offense drunk driving convictions. He assumed that all fifth and sixth offense drunk drivers are now sentenced to six months in prison, and that all of them will be sentenced to 18 months, triple the previous sentence, should the bill be passed. Goyke estimated incarceration costs would also triple under the bill. Some Republican committee members disputed Goyke's estimate, saying many people sentenced for fifth and sixth drunk driving are sentenced to much longer than the minimum six months in prison, so that costs would not triple. State Rep. Kathleen Bernier (R-Chippewa Falls), said that cost is a concern but "you can't put a number on the lives." State Rep. Jim Ott (R-Mequon), the main sponsor of the legislation, said his intention was not to send more people to prison for 18 months, but wanted the tougher penalties to discourage people from drinking and driving.. "I want less people driving drunk," he said. Goyke also said the prison system simply does not have room to house the additional inmates. The Department of Corrections already is contracting with local jails for beds, he said. DOC, in its budget request to Gov. Scott Walker, said it already is facing a bed shortage because of tougher drunk driving laws that took effect Jan. 1. Previously, most fourth offense drunk driving convictions were misdemeanors, and the law elevated them to felonies. It also tightened other penalties for repeat offenders. DOC projected a need for 2,185 contract beds by 2018-2019, but Gov. Scott Walker proposed funding for just 977, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. The Department of Administration, which houses Walker's budget office, said it did not expect the DOC projections to be realized "based on prior trends in law changes and their effects on population," the LFB said. Welcome to our new "Crime of the Month" feature, where we look at the numbers and issues behind court cases in Wisconsin. Felony bail jumping is the most common type of felony case opened in the state and is the most likely to be dismissed before trial. It also is enforced with great inconsistency between counties. Felony bail jumping “is a horrible, horrible statute," said Anthony Cotton, president of the Wisconsin Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. "I don't think the threat of a bail jumping prosecution does one bit to ensure a defendant complies with their condition of bail." But Manitowoc County District Attorney Jacalyn LaBre, president of the Wisconsin District Attorneys Association, said the charge designed to hold defendants accountable. “They could just follow conditions of bond and not face those charges,” she said. Some 7,034 felony bail jumping cases were opened last year, slightly edging drug possession th (6,984 cases) as the most common felony case type opened, according to state figures. Some 37 percent of felony bail jumping cases were dismissed before trial, the highest dismissal rate of any case type, according to state figures. Stalking was the second most likely to be dismissed, with a 29% dismissal rate, according to state court figures. Felony bail jumping occurs when a person out on bond on a felony charge violates the conditions of that bond. In Ashland County last year, 120 out of 316, or 38 percent, of felony cases opened were bail jumping cases, In Shawano County, where a similar number of felony cases were opened, just 45 of 324, or 13.9 percent, of those cases were bail jumping cases. In Milwaukee County, which had 5,543 felony cases last year, by far the most in the state, just 4.7 percent, or 262, were felony bail jumping cases. The statistics reflect cases in which felony bail jumping was the most serious charge. The charge can elevate a non-crime, such as missing a drug test, or a misdemeanor, such as disorderly conduct, into a felony carrying a penalty of up to six years in prison. “There are thousands of felony bail jumpings every year,” said State Rep. Evan Goyke (D-Milwaukee). ”It’s frequently a system-created crime.” LaBre said counties may use the law differently, depending on circumstances. Staffing and workload and office priorities may influence decisions about how to use the felony bail jumping charge, she said. Felony bail jumping can result in some strange situations. Last month, a Court of Appeals panel threw out a man’s felony drug convictions, but let stand felony bail jumping charges issued when the he violated the bond conditions on the drug charges by missing three drug tests. So he faced felony charges for non-criminal bond violations in a felony case that was tossed. Earlier this month, a different Appeals Court panel upheld the sentence handed down to a man facing stalking charges who violated his bond by entering the building where his target, a social worker, worked. By entering that building, the appeals panel said, the man violated his bond both in the stalking case and in an earlier 2009 case. The man got a harsher sentence -- four years in prison -- on the bail jumping charges than he did on the main stalking conviction - 1 ½ years. Prosecutors can use a felony bail charge as a hammer to coerce a defendant to accept a plea deal, Cotton said. He told of a client who was charged with trying to strangle his wife and who well might have been innocent of that. But the client was picked up for drunk driving, a non-criminal offense that violated the conditions of his bond. With the six-year bail jumping charge hanging over his head, he ultimately took a deal on the strangulation case, even though he had a good chance of winning if he went to trial. Goyke last year introduced a bill that would prohibit felony bail jumping charges unless the alleged offender was charged with a new crime while on bond. That bill went nowhere in the Republican-controlled legislature. The State Public Defender's office, in its 2017-19 budget request, recommended charging all bail jumping cases as misdemeanors. It could have save about $770,000 last fiscal year if the 8,147 felony bail jumping cases it handled were charged as misdemeanors, the agency said in budget documents. Gov. Scott Walker did not include the idea in his 2017-19 budget proposal.
LaBre said most prosecutors did not abuse the bail jumping charge. “We don’t go looking for it,” she said, especially with existing workloads and staffing shortages.. She declined to say whether she thought the law should be changed. LaBre said a felony bail jumping charge can be reduced to a misdemeanor if a district attorney believes that is appropriate. Felony bail jumping also qualifies for expungement, which many felonies do not. A prosecutor can allow a defendant to plead guilty to the felony bail jumping with the underlying crime read in so a judge is aware of it so the defendant can request and work toward expungement, she said. That, she said, “obviously benefits the defendant.” “People do get charged with bail jumping for minor violations of their release,” Goyke said. “If you’re really serious about reducing the prison population and reform and taking caseloads off DAs, and public defenders and the courts, you have to attack and reform various ways the system is creating its own problem.“ A federal lawsuit filed last week alleges that corrections officers at the County Jail shackled pregnant inmates receiving medical attention and giving birth. The suit, filed by Melissa Hall, seeks class action status. It is the second such lawsuit filed against Milwaukee County and Sheriff David Clarke. The same law firm -- Loevy & Loevy, of Chicago (more on the firm here and here) -- is involved in both suits. In the first suit, the plaintiff is identified only as Jane Doe. That suit also includes allegations that Jane Doe was sexually assaulted by a county jailer Xavier D. Thicklen. Jane Doe and Melissa Hall are different ages, according to the complaints filed in each case, and so do not appear to be the same woman. The Jane Doe case is pending before U.S. District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller. The Melissa Hall suit has been assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge David E. Jones, but either side in the case can object to having a magistrate judge preside in the matter. Stadtmueller denied a motion from lawyers on both sides in the Jane Doe case asking for separate trials for the class action allegations and sexual assault allegations. The judge ordered the trial to begin June 5, but the filing of the Melissa Hall lawsuit could affect that timeline. The new suit alleges that Hall, 27, was pregnant during her incarceration at the jail from February to August 2013. She was "forced to receive pre-natal care, labor, give birth and undergo post-partum treatment while shackled," according to the complaint. "For example, when Plaintiff was hospitalized for childbirth and left her hospital bed to go to the bathroom, she was made to wear a 'belly-chain' around her waist with her wrists attached to the waist and her legs attached to one another by leg irons," the complaint says. Deputies refused to unshackle her during delivery, despite requests to do so from Hall's caregivers, the complaint says. The jail's shackling policy applies to all inmates regardless of their criminal or medical histories, the suit alleges. Shackling a woman during labor can hamper medical staff delivering emergency care, the suit says. For pregnant women, "Belly chains and leg irons can impact the mother's balance and increase the risk of falls thereby endangering the life and health of the child," the suit said. "Cuffing a woman's hands may prevent the breaking of a fall and impede a woman's ability to protect her stomach." Many health organizations oppose the use of restraints and the U.S. Marshals Service and Federal Bureau of Prisons have restricted use of restraints on pregnant women, the suit said. Scott Wales and Kashoua "Kristy" Yang are competing for the Branch 47 judicial seat now held by Milwaukee County Circuit Judge John Siefert, who is not seeking re-election. This is the only contested Milwaukee County judicial race this year. Wales and Yang agreed to answer a series of questions from WJI to better inform voters about issues in the race. This week's question: Do you think mandatory minimum sentences are appropriate? If not, why not? If so, why and under what circumstances?
Adults can be slapped with felony charges for offenses committed at age 9, when they were too young to be considered delinquent, a Court of Appeals panel ruled Wednesday. The ruling came in a Waukesha County case. The defendant, Shaun M. Sanders, allegedly kissed and fondled his sister's breasts when he was a young boy. The sister testified that the touching and kissing progressed to include oral sex when Sanders and she grew older . The District 2 panel, in a decision written by Appeals Judge Mark D. Gundrum, ruled that state law does not prohibit children under 10 from being prosecuted for crimes, even though state law does not give juvenile courts jurisdiction over children alleged to be delinquent until they are 10. Appeals Judge Brian K. Hagedorn joined in the opinion, and Appeals Judge Paul F. Reilly concurred in it. The decision affirmed rulings by Waukesha County Circuit Judges Jennifer Dorow and Lee S. Dreyfus, Jr. In his opinion, Gundrum said the Legislature never adopted a law establishing that charging decisions should be determined by the defendant's age when the crime was committed "despite 50 years of holdings reiterating that the competency of a circuit court to address criminal acts of an individual is determined by the individual's age when a legal action is filed and not when he/she committed the acts,." The appeals panel acknowledged that Sanders, if his alleged conduct has been discovered before he was 10, would have been treated as a child in need of protective services (CHIPS).
Sanders, now 22, denied the allegations against him. He told the jury that for about one month, when he was eight or nine, he would ask his sister to lift up her shirt and show him her breasts. He eventually was acquitted by a jury of repeated sexual assault of a same child, a crime he was accused of committing from the age of nine to 12, but was convicted of repeated sexual assault of a child, incest with a child and enticing a child for sexual purposes crimes that occurred when he was 14 years old to 18 years old. Sanders argued that his lawyer was ineffective for not trying to get the first count dismissed and that allowing the jury to hear the allegations contained in the first count was prejudicial to his case. The court rejected Sanders ' assertion that the legislature set age limits for the juvenile and adult systems to protect children younger than 10 from the potential consequences of their actions. "Our courts ... have explained that the legislative purpose of the age limits is to ensure persons who commit criminal acts are treated by our justice system in a manner appropriate to their age when the actions are addressed by the system and not their age when they committed the wrongful acts," Gundrum wrote. In his concurrence, Reilly he said he was concerned that "at some stage a child does not have the capacity to commit a crime, i.e., siblings, aged two and three, sharing a bath and paying 'doctor' do not have the capacity to commit the crime of sexual assault of a child." "The imprisonment of an adult for conduct the person engaged in when they were between the ages of one and nine years old strikes me as akin to punishing a puppy two days after the puppy had an accident in the house - the child/puppy has no idea why they were just struck and all they have learned is a fear of their master," he wrote. However, he said, an appeals court previously ruled that it was OK to file a delinquency petition against a 12-year-old who committed a crime when he was still young enough to qualify as a CHIPS. "If it is permissible for the state to pull a CHIPS category act into a delinquency petition, then there is no logical reason why the state cannot pull a CHIPS category act into a criminal complaint," he wrote. Scott Wales and Kashoua "Kristy" Yang are competing for the Branch 47 judicial seat now held by Milwaukee County Circuit Judge John Siefert, who is not seeking re-election. This is the only contested Milwaukee County judicial race this year. Wales and Yang agreed to answer a series of questions from WJI to better inform voters about issues in the race. This week's question: What are the greatest obstacles judges face when trying to deliver true justice? What can or should be done about them?
A County Board committee recommended, 5-0, on Thursday that the county increase the daily amount it charges municipalities to house municipal ordinance violators in the House of Correction and the County Jail. The $25.40 per day the county now charges has not changed in 10 years. The new charge has not been determined, but could be in the $35 - $40 per day range, Deputy Corporation Counsel Colleen Foley told the Judiciary, Safety and General Services Committee. The Wisconsin Justice Initiative, during the 2017 budget process, asked county supervisors to consider raising the rate both to increase county revenue and discourage municipalities from using the incarceration option for petty offenders. State law allows the county to recover certain costs associated with housing the offenders, who are Municipal Court defendants who do not pay their forfeitures on time and who do not attend a hearing to determine whether they are qualified for an alternative sentence due to poverty. Foley made clear to the committee that the county is limited in the costs it may recover from the communities. Last year, municipal ordinance violators were locked up in the House of Correction for a total of 43.73 years, according to county figures. Because municipal ordinance violations are considered civil matters and not crimes, defendants are not entitled to attorneys. Photos, from left: County Supervisors Deanna Alexander, Theodore Lipscomb, and Sheldon Wasserman. Supervisor Sheldon Wasserman said the resolution is not designed as a money-maker, but to cover costs. Wasserman is sponsoring the measure with County Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb and County Supervisor Deanna Alexander. West Allis will be the most affected by any rate increase, as it incarcerates far more municipal defendants than any other community in the county. Last year, West Allis incarcerated municipal ordinance violators for a total of 18.7 years. The chart below shows how many times a municipality committed a Municipal Court defendant to the House, how many total incarceration days the defendant served, and the average commitment length. Most commitments from Milwaukee Municipal Court, per Sheriff David Clarke's directive, are served at the County Jail in downtown Milwaukee, not at the House of Correction in Franklin, where commitments originating in the suburbs are served. The chart captures only those Milwaukee defendants transferred to the House, generally when the jail reached its population capacity. The number of commitments from each community does not necessarily reflect the number of individuals incarcerated, as a person can have more than one commitment. The table below was updated May 18, 2017 to reflect adjustments provided by the House of Correction. The City of Milwaukee also paid the Sheriff's Department for 72 boarding days for commitments served at the County Jail, according to the city comptroller's office.
There were a total of 2,483 commitment days served at the jail in 2016, according to the Milwaukee County Department of Administration. Generally, only City of Milwaukee commitments are served at the jail. |
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