Elements of the offense: Bail jumping, like all other criminal offenses requires that the government prove parts of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt.  The “parts” are elements.  Wisconsin Jury Instruction 1795 provides the elements of bail jumping: Firstly, the defendant was arrested for or charged with a felony or misdemeanor; and Secondly, the defendant…

Drunk driving homicide penalties change A new law was enacted in Wisconsin that changes the sentencing structure for drunk driving homicides.  Signed into law by Governor Tony Evers on November 20, 2019, the bill created a presumptive minimum penalty for all drunk driving homicides.  This post will explain the new law, how it changes the…

Burglary vs. robbery explained. This is a question frequently asked of our criminal defense attorneys in Milwaukee, WI.  What’s the difference between burglary and robbery?  Frequently people use the terms interchangeably.  Unfortunately, they’re not the same. One of our top criminal defense attorneys explains burglary vs. robbery in this blog post.  If you are charged…

Common examples of theft of services Frequently defendants aren’t aware their action is a form of theft.  Surely, sometimes the inability to pay for a service forces the defendant into criminal liability.  There are a few common examples of theft of services relevant to these examples: Neglecting to pay for medical treatment.  Unfortunately, due to…

Court of appeals Anderson challenged the search at the trial court level and lost the argument. The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court decision.  That court found that “Seeger had sufficient basis to believe that Anderson was subject to Act 79.”  Further supporting that decision, the court found “Seeger was familiar with Anderson, having…

Did you know that if a police officer detects the smell of marijuana in your car during a traffic stop, he can search your car?  So long as marijuana remains illegal in Wisconsin, police can search your car based on the smell alone.  This post looks at car searches based on the smell of marijuana….