State v. Christopher E. Masarik, 2015AP194-CR, District 1, 10/4/16 (not recommended for publication); case activity (including briefs) Masarik didn’t unequivocally assert his right to have counsel present while he was being questioned about an arson that resulted in the death of another, and his statement wasn’t involuntary despite his mental health difficulties. About two hours… Read more
1. Generally
State v. Jeanette M. Janusiak, 2015AP160-CR, 1/28/16, District 4 (not recommended for publication); case activity (including briefs) Pregnancy does not by itself make a suspect particularly vulnerable to police pressure and tactics during custodial interrogation, the court of appeals holds, so the fact that Janusiak was in an advanced state of pregnancy didn’t render her… Read more
United States v. Antonio West, 7th Circuit Court of Appeals Case No. 14-2514, 12/30/15 The trial court erroneously excluded expert evidence that West sought to admit regarding factors that made him susceptible to making an unreliable confession to a crime. West, a felon, confessed to possessing a firearm. He moved to suppress his statement arguing… Read more
State v. Raheem Moore, 2015 WI 54, 6/16/15, affirming a published decision of the court of appeals; majority opinion by Justice Prosser; case activity (including briefs) The supreme court affirms the court of appeals’ conclusion that 15-year-old Raheem Moore’s confession was voluntary, but it rejects the court of appeals’ reading of § 938.31, which requires juvenile confessions to… Read more
State v. Joel I.-N., 2014 WI App 119; case activity The unrecorded statement Joel I.N., a juvenile, gave to the police was admissible despite the fact the police failed to record the statement as required by §§ 983.195(2)(b) and 938.31(3)(b) because “exigent public safety circumstances” rendered recording his statement infeasible under § 938.31(3)(c)5. Joel also knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily… Read more
State v. Raheem Moore, 2014 WI App 19, petition for review granted, 5/22/14, affirmed, 2015 WI 54; case activity Moore, a 15-year-old charged with homicide, made incriminating statements to police 11 hours after he was arrested. His most incriminating statement–that he was the shooter and not merely an accomplice–came during a portion of the interrogation… Read more
State v. Douglas H. Stream, Case No. 2011AP2051, District 1, 1/29/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity The circuit court properly denied the defendant’s Wis. Stat. § 974.06 postconviction motion, which claimed that his trial lawyer was ineffective for not objecting to references to the truthfulness of his confession during a… Read more
A.M. v. Butler, 360 F.3d 787 (7th Cir. 2004) Issue/Holding: … In fact, the Supreme Court has consistently recognized that a confession or waiver of rights by a juvenile is not the same as a confession or waiver by an adult. A defendant’s age is an important factor in determining whether a confession is voluntary. ……… Read more
