Harry G. Snyder

In State v. Hambly, the defendant was convicted of delivering cocaine after a jury trial and appealed the denial of his motion to suppress statements made to police following his arrest. Hambly argued that detectives engaged in the functional equivalent of interrogation by providing details about the alleged drug sales and that his request for counsel was not honored, violating his Miranda rights. The Wisconsin Court of Appeals affirmed the circuit court's ruling, holding that the officer's brief factual response to Hambly's questions did not constitute interrogation and that Hambly had initiated further conversation and knowingly waived his right to counsel before making the statements. The court reviewed the totality of the circumstances, including the short duration of custody, lack of coercion, and Hambly's prior experience with police, to conclude that the statements were admissible.

criminal lawprocedure

In this small claims case, homeowners John and Sandra Holz sued Busy Bees Contracting, Inc., for breach of a home improvement contract after the contractor built retaining walls on their property in a manner that the trial court found was not workmanlike or up to contract standards, requiring repairs by another contractor. The trial court awarded the Holzes damages of $3,395.30. On appeal, Busy Bees, through its nonlawyer president, challenged the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the trial court's credibility and factual findings. The court of appeals first held that it had jurisdiction because Wis. Stat. § 799.06(2) permits a full-time authorized employee to handle small claims actions and proceedings, including appeals, creating an exception to the general rule against nonlawyers representing corporations. The court then affirmed the judgment, concluding that the evidence was sufficient to support the trial court's determinations, but declared the appeal frivolous because it lacked any arguable basis to overturn the trial court's assessments and remanded for an award of costs and fees to the Holzes.

business & regulatoryprocedureproperty