State v. Carlson, 261 Wis. 2d 97

661 N.W.2d 51 (2003) · Supreme Court of Wisconsin · May 13, 2003 · No. No. 01-1136-CR

Summary

The Supreme Court of Wisconsin held that a juror must be able to understand English to satisfy the statutory qualifications for jury service under Wis. Stat. §§ 756.02 and 756.04. Because a juror who had indicated on his questionnaire that he could not understand English was nevertheless impaneled, the court concluded that the defendant was prejudiced and that the error was not harmless. The court reversed the court of appeals and remanded for a new trial.

Holdings

  1. An ability to understand the English language is necessary to satisfy the juror-qualification requirements of Wisconsin Statutes § 756.02 and § 756.04.
  2. Vera was not qualified to serve as a juror because he could not sufficiently understand English, had indicated that inability on his questionnaire, and should have been removed from the jury pool.
  3. The error was not harmless because the juror's inability to understand English prevented meaningful participation in the trial process and prejudiced Carlson.

Questions Presented

  1. Whether Wisconsin Statutes §§ 756.02 and 756.04 require a juror to understand English and require the clerk to strike a potential juror whose questionnaire indicates that the person cannot understand English.
  2. Whether Vera lacked the statutory qualifications to serve as a juror.
  3. Whether seating Vera and denying Carlson's motion for a new trial constituted harmless error.
  4. Whether Carlson was entitled to reversal of his conviction and a new trial.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded

Cases Cited (15)

  • State v. Coble, 100 Wis. 2d 179, 301 N.W.2d 221 (1981)(distinguished)
  • State v. Broomfield, 223 Wis. 2d 465, 589 N.W.2d 225 (1999)(followed)
  • State v. Wyss, 124 Wis. 2d 681, 370 N.W.2d 745 (1985)(followed)
  • State v. Martinez, 150 Wis. 2d 62, 440 N.W.2d 783 (1989)(followed)
  • State v. McCallum, 208 Wis. 2d 463, 561 N.W.2d 707 (1997)(followed)
  • State v. Turner, 186 Wis. 2d 277, 521 N.W.2d 148 (Ct. App. 1994)(followed)
  • State v. Harvey, 2002 WI 93, 254 Wis. 2d 442, 647 N.W.2d 189(applied)
  • State v. Tomlinson, 2002 WI 91, 254 Wis. 2d 502, 648 N.W.2d 367(applied)
  • State v. Dyess, 124 Wis. 2d 525, 370 N.W.2d 222 (1985)(followed)
  • United States v. Okiyama, 521 F.2d 601 (9th Cir. 1975)(analogized)

Showing top 10 of 15.

Cited In (0)

No citing cases on record yet.

Download CaseDownload Case DataDownload Case and DataDownload AI Instructions

Court Document

Open PDF
Loading document…

More from Wisconsin Supreme Court