Wisconsin Legislative Council
AMENDMENT MEMO
One Ea st Ma in Stre e t, Suite 401 • Ma dison, W I 53703 • (608) 266-1304 • le g.council@le gis.wisconsin.gov • http://www.le gis.wisconsin.gov/lc
Memo published: March 22, 2023 Contact: David Moore, Senior Staff Attorney
2023 Senate Bill 75
Senate
Amendment 1
BACKGROUND
The Wisconsin Constitution affirmatively provides a right to release under reasonable conditions prior
to trial in most cases, and limits the reasons for which monetary bail can be required. Specifically,
Article I, Section 8 (2) of the Wisconsin Constitution provides as follows:
All persons, before conviction, shall be eligible for release under reasonable
conditions designed to assure their appearance in court, protect members of
the community from serious bodily harm or prevent the intimidation of
witnesses. Monetary conditions of release may be imposed at or after the
initial appearance only upon a finding that there is a reasonable basis to
believe that the conditions are necessary to assure appearance in court. The
legislature may authorize, by law, courts to revoke a person’s release for a
violation of a condition of release.
2023 Senate Joint Resolution 2 (the proposed amendment) modifies Article I, Section 8 (2) of the
Wisconsin Constitution in two ways. First, it alters the purposes for which courts may impose
conditions of release. Under current law, conditions may be designed to “protect members of the
community” from “serious bodily harm,” among other purposes. The constitutional amendment allows
conditions to be designed instead to “protect members of the community from serious harm, as defined
by the Legislature by law.”
The second change relates to the reasons courts may impose monetary conditions of release. The
proposed amendment retains the requirement that monetary conditions may be imposed only if
necessary to assure the defendant’s appearance in court. But, as an exception to this general
requirement, it provides that if a person is accused of a violent crime, as defined by the Legislature by
law, monetary conditions of release may be imposed upon a finding that there is a reasonable basis to
believe that the conditions are necessary based on the totality of the circumstances, taking into account
whether the accused has a previous conviction for a violent crime as defined by the Legislature by law,
the need to prevent the intimidation of witnesses, and the potential affirmative defenses of the accused.
2021 SENATE BILL 75
Senate Bill 75 makes various statutory changes that would take effect if the proposed constitutional
amendment is approved in the 2023 Spring Election. Similar to the proposed amendment, the bill
generally modifies current law in two ways.
First, it amends statutes governing pretrial release to allow a court to impose nonmonetary conditions
of release designed to protect members of the community from “serious harm,” as defined by the bill for
this purpose. Second, it modifies statutes related to the reasons a court may impose money bail to
permit a court to impose bail based on the totality of the circumstances if an individual is accused of a - 2 -
“violent crime” and defines that term for this purpose. Very generally, the bill defines “violent crime” as
any of a variety of enumerated offenses.
SENATE AMENDMENT 1
Senate Amendment 1 adds the following offenses to the definition of violent crime under the bill:
Mutilating or hiding a corpse. [s. 940.11, Stats.]
Assisting suicide. [s. 940.12, Stats.]
Misdemeanor battery. [s. 940.19 (1), Stats.]
Misdemeanor battery to an unborn child. [s. 940.195 (1), Stats.]
Intentionally causing bodily harm an elder person. [s. 940.198 (2) (b), Stats.]
Recklessly causing bodily harm or great bodily harm to an elder person. [s. 940.198 (3), Stats.]
Injury by negligent handling of dangerous weapons, explosives, or fire. [s. 940.24, Stats.]
Abuse of residents of penal facilities. [s. 940.29, Stats.]
Human trafficking.
1
[s. 940.302 (2), Stats.]
Criminal gang member solicitation. [s. 941.38 (2), Stats.]
Burglary (certain circumstances).
2
[s. 943.10 (1m), Stats.]
Reckless physical abuse of a child. [s. 948.03 (3), Stats.]
Repeated acts of physical abuse against the same child (certain circumstances).
3
[s. 948.03 (5) (a)
5., Stats.]
Intentionally taking any vehicle from owner by use or threat of force. [s. 943.23 (1r), Stats.]
The amendment also removes the following offenses from the definition of violent offense under the
bill:
Extortion against a financial institution. [s. 943.86, Stats.]
Mail fraud. [s. 943.89, Stats.]
Wire fraud against a financial institution. [s. 943.90, Stats.]
BILL HISTORY
Senator Wanggaard offered Senate Amendment 1 to 2023 Senate Bill 75 on March 14, 2023. On March
16, 2023, the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety voted to recommend adoption of the
amendment and passage of the bill, as amended, both on votes of Ayes, 5; Noes, 3.
For a full history of the bill, visit the Legislature’s bill history page here.
DM:ksm
1
The bill included a citation to one element of the offense of human trafficking. The amendment clarifies that the crime
of human trafficking is included within the definition of violent crime.
2
The bill included s. 940.10 (2), Stats. The amendment expands the burglary offenses included within the definition of
violent crime to all of the offenses under s. 940.10, Stats.
3
The bill included s. 948.03 (5) (a) 1.-4., which provides elevated penalties for repeated physical abuse of the same child
if certain circumstances apply. The amendment provides that all offenses that constitute repeated physical abuse of the
same child are included within the definition of violent crime.