State v. Alfredo Ramirez, 2001 WI App 158, PFR filed 7/11/01
For Ramirez: Elizabeth A. Cavendish-Sosinski
Issue: Whether Ramirez’s guilty plea waived an ex post facto challenge to the charged offense.
Holding: ¶4 n. 4:
We could invoke the guilty plea/waiver rule against Ramirez since he pled guilty to the charge after the trial court rejected his constitutional challenge. See State v. Schroeder, 224 Wis. 2d 706, 711, 593 N.W.2d 76 (Ct. App. 1999). However, the guilty plea/waiver rule is one of judicial administration, not one of the court’s power to act. See State v. Riekkoff, 112 Wis. 2d 119, 124, 332 N.W.2d 744 (1983). In prior cases, the supreme court has chosen not to invoke waiver where the defendant has entered a guilty plea but presented a constitutional challenge. See Flores v. State, 69 Wis. 2d 509, 510, 230 N.W.2d 637 (1975); Mack v. State, 93 Wis. 2d 287, 296-97, 286 N.W.2d 563 (1980). This is especially so where there are no factual questions presented, the parties have fully briefed the issue and the matter is of statewide importance. Mack, 93 Wis. 2d at 296-97. Those considerations prompt us to not invoke the guilty plea/waiver rule in this case. Not only have the parties fully briefed the issue on appeal, but they also litigated the issue in the trial court. In addition, the question of whether Wis. Stat. § 943.201(2) is a continuing offense is one of first impression and is of statewide importance.
