State v. Ronnie L. Thums, 2012AP929-CR, District 4, 7/25/13; court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity Sufficiency of evidence of conspiracy Thums was charged with offering money to Trepanier, a fellow prison inmate, to kill Thums’s ex-wife and others associated with her. (¶2). In response to Trepanier’s questions about how he’d be paid… Read more
9. Sec. 939.31
State v. Michael Lock, 2013 WI App 80; case activity Multiplicity — conviction for conspiracy and for completed crime under § 939.72(2) Lock was convicted of conspiracy to solicit prostitutes and conspiracy to pander between 1998 and 2003. Based on conduct in four specific months in 2002, he was also convicted of four counts of soliciting prostitutes… Read more
Smith v. U.S., USSC 11-8976, 1/9/13 United States Supreme Court decision, affirming United States v.Moore, 651 F.3d 30 (D.C. Cir. 2011) Conspiracy – burden of proof on defendant’s claim of withdrawal Petitioner’s claim lies at the intersection of a withdrawal defense and a statute-of-limitations defense. He asserts that once he presented evidence that he ended his… Read more
on review of published decision; case activity Issues (composed by On Point): 1. Whether the evidence is sufficient to sustain conviction for conspiracy-theft by fraud, in that: no conspirator expressly made a false representation; and in any event, Steffes joined the conspiracy after it had already been set in motion. 2. Whether the evidence is sufficient to sustain… Read more
State v. Frederick L. Lucht, 2011AP1644-CR, District 4, 9/27/12 court of appeals decision (not recommended for publication); case activity The record supports the existence of an agreement between Lucht and another to commit the crime of first-degree intentional homicide. ¶28 Lucht refers us to cases standing for propositions that a conspiracy cannot be based on a… Read more
Question Presented: Whether withdrawing from a conspiracy prior to the statute of limitations period negates an element of a conspiracy charge such that, once a defendant meets his burden of production that he did so withdraw, the burden of persuasion rests with the government to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he was a member… Read more
State v. Matthew R. Steffes, 2012 WI App 47 (recommended for publication), petition for review granted, 10/16/12; for Steffes: Jeffrey W. Jensen; case activity Conspiracy to Commit Theft by Fraud, §§ 939.31, 943.20(1)(d) – Sufficiency of Evidence Evidence held sufficient to sustain Steffes’ conviction for conspiracy to commit theft by fraud, based on his participation in… Read more
State v. Eliseo Peralta, 2011 WI App 81(recommended for publication); for Peralta: Martin J. Pruhs; case activity Conspiracy, § 939.31 – “Overt Act” The “overt act” element of conspiracy, though it must go “beyond mere planning and agreement,” may be “virtually any act,” even if “insignificant,” ¶¶19-21. Thus, Peralta’s “communication to an undercover police detective… Read more
