State v. Alexander M. Schultz

2020 WI 24
Wisconsin Supreme Court·Decided March 4, 2020·No. 2017AP001977-CR·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

2020 WI 24

SUPREME COURT OF WISCONSIN CASE NO.: 2017AP1977-CR

COMPLETE TITLE: State of Wisconsin, Plaintiff-Respondent,

v.

Alexander M. Schultz,

Defendant-Appellant-Petitioner.

REVIEW OF DECISION OF THE COURT OF APPEALS Reported at 385 Wis. 2d 494,922 N.W.2d 866 PDC No:2019 WI App 3 - Published

OPINION FILED: March 4, 2020 SUBMITTED ON BRIEFS: ORAL ARGUMENT: September 9, 2019

SOURCE OF APPEAL:

COURT: Circuit COUNTY: Lincoln JUDGE: Robert R. Russell

JUSTICES: REBECCA GRASSL BRADLEY, J., delivered the majority opinion of the Court, in which ROGGENSACK, C.J., ZIEGLER, and KELLY, JJ., joined. HAGEDORN, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which ANN WALSH BRADLEY, and DALLET, JJ., joined. NOT PARTICIPATING:

ATTORNEYS:

For the defendant-appellant-petitioner, there were briefs filed by Frederick A. Bechtold, Taylor Falls, Minnesota. There was an oral argument by Frederick A. Bechtold.

For the plaintiff-respondent, there was a brief filed by Scott E. Rosenow, assistant attorney general; with whom on the brief was Joshua L. Kaul, attorney general. There was an oral argument by Scott E. Rosenow.

2020 WI 24

NOTICE

This opinion is subject to further editing and modification. The final version will appear in the bound volume of the official reports.

No. 2017AP1977-CR (L.C. No. 2014CF68)

STATE OF WISCONSIN : IN SUPREME COURT State of Wisconsin,

Plaintiff-Respondent,

FILED

v. Mar 4, 2020

Alexander M. Schultz, Sheila T. Reiff Clerk of Supreme Court

Defendant-Appellant-Petitioner.

REBECCA GRASSL BRADLEY, J., delivered the majority opinion of the Court, in which ROGGENSACK, C.J., ZIEGLER, and KELLY, JJ., joined. HAGEDORN, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which ANN WALSH BRADLEY, and DALLET, JJ., joined.

REVIEW of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Affirmed.

¶1 REBECCA GRASSL BRADLEY, J. The State charged Alexander M. Schultz with repeated sexual assault of a child for engaging in sexual intercourse with the fifteen-year-old victim, M.T.,1 in "late summer to early fall of 2012." A jury acquitted him of this charge. Shortly thereafter, paternity test results revealed Schultz to be the father of M.T.'s child. The State then charged Schultz with sexual assault of a child under 16 years of age

1For privacy purposes, we do not refer to the victim in this case by name. See Wis. Stat. § 809.86 (2017-18).

No. 2017AP1977-CR

occurring "on or about October 19, 2012," the date M.T.'s obstetrician determined the child was conceived. We review whether the State exposed Schultz to multiple prosecutions for the same offense in violation of the Double Jeopardy Clauses of the United States and Wisconsin Constitutions. Schultz asks us to consider whether a court may ascertain the scope of jeopardy in the first prosecution based upon trial testimony, as well as to determine who bears the burden resulting from any ambiguity in the timeframe of a charging document——the defendant or the State.2

¶2 We hold that a court may examine the entire record of the first proceeding, including the evidence admitted at trial, when determining the scope of jeopardy in a prior criminal prosecution. Because the complaint incorporated the police report, which documents a certain end date for the intercourse, and the evidence presented at Schultz's first trial did not encompass the same timeframe of the offense charged in his second prosecution, we conclude that Schultz was not twice in jeopardy

for the same criminal offense. Specifically, the State's second prosecution of Schultz for sexual assault of a child under 16 "on

or about October 19, 2012," did not include the same timeframe as its first prosecution for repeated sexual assault of a child in the "late summer to early fall of 2012." We affirm the court of appeals.

We interpret Schultz's use of the word "burden" in the 2

petition for review to ask which party should have the responsibility to overcome an ambiguous timeframe in a charging document. Due to our determination on the first question, we need not address the second.

No. 2017AP1977-CR

I. BACKGROUND

A. Schultz's First Prosecution

¶3 In December 2012, Merrill Police Officer Matthew Waid interviewed then-fifteen-year-old M.T. after learning she was pregnant. Waid learned that M.T. had sexual intercourse with a male named "Dominic" in early to mid-October. M.T. also informed Waid that she had sexual intercourse with Schultz "approximately one month before she had sexual intercourse with Dominic." M.T. confirmed that "she had her period between the time she had sexual intercourse with Alex" and when she had intercourse with Dominic in early to mid-October. When questioned by Waid, Schultz denied having a sexual relationship with M.T.

¶4 In January 2013, Officer Waid conducted two follow-up interviews with M.T. about her sexual relationship with Schultz. In the first, M.T. claimed she and Schultz had sexual intercourse more than five times, beginning in the middle of 2012 and lasting for a few months. Schultz was either 19 or 20 years old when the

intercourse began. In the second, M.T. showed Waid Facebook messages between her and Schultz on September 3, 2012. In these

messages, Schultz was angry and dismissive of M.T. because he believed that she was telling other people things that "can put me in prison." Based upon these messages, the interviews with M.T., and interviews with multiple witnesses who suggested knowledge of a sexual relationship between Schultz and M.T., Waid recommended charges against Schultz.

No. 2017AP1977-CR

¶5 In April 2013, the State filed charges against Schultz in Lincoln County Circuit Court3 for repeated sexual assault of a child, a Class C felony.4 The complaint listed the timeframe for the assaults as "late summer to early fall of 2012." Because Schultz was a repeat criminal offender with three prior convictions, the State also charged him with a penalty enhancer pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 939.62(1)(c)(2017-18).5 The complaint "incorporated by reference" the entirety of Officer Waid's police report and attached his report to the complaint. The subsequent Information also listed "late summer to early fall of 2012" as the timeframe for the crime. During a pre-trial hearing, the parties agreed M.T.'s pregnancy was not pertinent to Schultz's trial because Dominic was presumed to be the child's father.6

3 The Honorable Jay R. Tlusty presided.

4 See Wis. Stat. § 948.025(1)(e). For the jury to convict under § 948.025(1)(e), it must find the defendant engaged in three separate sexual assaults, in violation of Wis. Stat. § 948.02(1) or (2), during the charged timeframe.

5 All subsequent references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2017-18 version unless otherwise indicated.

6 Before trial, Schultz's counsel moved to introduce evidence of M.T.'s pregnancy as well as her claim that Dominic was the father, because he assumed M.T.'s pregnancy "was going to be part of this case" and "part of the context of the case." In response to that motion, the State moved for a continuance in order to prepare its response. Both M.T. and her mother supported the State's request for a continuance and expressed a desire to wait for the paternity test results. The State regarded the results as irrelevant, anticipating they would confirm Dominic to be the father. While Schultz indicated he wanted to see the test results, he also wanted to proceed with the trial and withdrew his motion. Both parties agreed to proceed with the trial as scheduled. The paternity test results were not available until after the first trial and therefore do not inform the determination of the scope

No. 2017AP1977-CR

¶6 Schultz's trial took place on January 21-22, 2014.

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State v. Alexander M. Schultz
2020 WI 24 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 2020)