Feb. 4, 2021 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled that a jail inmate who admitted stealing another inmate’s property in a telephone call with police was not “in custody,” which would have required the officer to give a Miranda warning before questioning him. The defendant, Brian Halverson, returned a call from an officer investigating an incident at a correctional facility at which Halverson was previously housed. The officer did not give Halverson any Miranda warnings prior to initiating the conversation. Miranda warnings, such as the “right to remain silent,” are required prior to a “custodial interrogation” of someone suspected…

Jan. 27, 2021 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled (5-2) that the Town of Newbold had authority to prohibit a property owner from dividing his lakefront lot into two parcels, rejecting the claim that the town’s ordinance was preempted. Michael Anderson owns property on Lake Mildred, northwest of Rhinelander, with more than 250 feet of shoreline frontage. He wanted to divide the lot into two parcels. However, the Town of Newbold’s Plan Commission denied his request under an ordinance which requires lakefront lots to be a minimum of 225 feet in width. Under Anderson’s proposal, the divided parcels would…

Jan. 21, 2021 – Although Wisconsin law requires a court to hold a preliminary hearing within 10 days of an initial appearance for those in custody on alleged felony charges, Nhia Lee – an indigent defendant – sat in jail for 113 days before his hearing. He remained in custody with no lawyer to represent him because the State Public Defender (SPD) could not find private counsel to take his case. The statutory 10-day deadline for holding a preliminary hearing was repeatedly extended for this reason. Lee ultimately obtained an SPD-appointed attorney and filed a motion to dismiss the case…

Jan. 6, 2021 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled (5-1) that an aggrieved party’s right to certiorari review of a zoning board’s decision was triggered when a written copy of the decision was filed in the board’s office, not when an oral decision was rendered. Gail Moreschi filed a writ for certiorari review within 30 days after the Village of Williams Bay Extraterritorial Zoning Board of Appeals (zoning board) voted orally to grant a variance requested by Moreschi’s neighbor, Suzanne and William Edwards (Edwards). Wis. Stat section 62.23(7)(e)10 says a party aggrieved by a decision of a zoning board…

Dec. 23, 2020 – The Wisconsin Supreme Court (4-3) recently denied an original action petition challenging a Dane County order that placed restrictions on business and indoor sports activities and prohibited indoor gatherings of extended family and friends. Emergency Order 10, addressing the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, expired on Dec. 16, 2020. A ruling from the supreme court may have addressed the county’s authority to issue such emergency orders in the future. But a majority declined to hear it. The petitioners – a gymnastics center incorporated as Gymfinity Ltd., as well as parents of children who participate in youth hockey…

Dec. 17, 2020 – A recent state appeals court decision has rejected the “conglomerate argument” when an adult child pursues wrongful death claims leveled against assisted living facilities owned and operated by a larger health care system. Adult children can bring wrongful death claims, on their own behalf, if a parent’s death is allegedly caused by a party’s negligence. When claims involve medical malpractice against health care providers, however, adult children have no standing. Under Wis. Stat. section 655.007 and Czapinski v. St. Francis Hospital, Inc., 2000 WI 80, 236 Wis. 2d 316, N.W.2d 120, adult children of a deceased…

Dec. 9, 2020 – An employer unlawfully discriminated against a job applicant based on the applicant’s conviction record, a state appeals court has ruled. Derrick Palmer filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development after Cree Inc. (Cree) rescinded a job offer to be a lighting schematic layout applications specialist. Cree manufactures and sells LED lighting products. An administrative law judge concluded Cree did not unlawfully discriminate, but the Labor and Industry Review Commission (LIRC) reversed. A circuit court reversed LIRC, also concluding Cree did not unlawfully discriminate. But in Cree Inc. v. LIRC, 2019AP1671, a three…