775.05 Compensation for innocent convicts.

(1) The claims board shall hear petitions for the relief of innocent persons who have been convicted of a crime.

(2) Any person who is imprisoned as the result of his or her conviction for a crime in any court of this state, of which crime the person claims to be innocent, and who is released from imprisonment for that crime after March 13, 1980, may petition the claims board for compensation for such imprisonment. Upon receipt of the petition, the claims board shall transmit a copy thereof to the prosecutor who prosecuted the petitioner and the judge who sentenced the petitioner for the conviction which is the subject of the claim, or their successors in office, for the information of these persons.

(3) After hearing the evidence on the petition, the claims board shall find either that the evidence is clear and convincing that the petitioner was innocent of the crime for which he or she suffered imprisonment, or that the evidence is not clear and convincing that he or she was innocent.

(4) If the claims board finds that the petitioner was innocent and that he or she did not by his or her act or failure to act contribute to bring about the conviction and imprisonment for which he or she seeks compensation, the claims board shall find the amount which will equitably compensate the petitioner, not to exceed $25,000 and at a rate of compensation not greater than $5,000 per year for the imprisonment. Compensation awarded by the claims board shall include any amount to which the board finds the petitioner is entitled for attorney fees, costs and disbursements. If the claims board finds that the amount it is able to award is not an adequate compensation it shall submit a report specifying an amount which it considers adequate to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature, for distribution to the legislature under s. 13.172 (2).

(5) The claims board shall keep a complete record of its proceedings in each case and of all the evidence. The findings and the award of the claims board shall be subject to review as provided in ch. 227.

History: 1979 c. 32 s. 53; 1979 c. 126, 176; Stats. 1979 s. 775.05; 1987 a. 186.

When there was no evidence in support of the claimant's conviction, and he was innocent as a matter of law, the Claims Board's finding to the contrary was inexplicable. Turnpaugh v. State of Wisconsin Claims Board, 2012 WI App 72, 342 Wis. 2d 182, 816 N.W.2d 920, 11-2365.

Incarceration in a jail is imprisonment within the meaning of this section. Turnpaugh v. State of Wisconsin Claims Board, 2012 WI App 72, 342 Wis. 2d 182, 816 N.W.2d 920, 11-2365.

Compensation for the Unjustly Imprisoned: A Model for Reform in Wisconsin. Fite. 2005 WLR 1181.

Exonerees' Hardships After Freedom. Delaney, Findley, & Sullivan. Wis. Law. Feb. 2010.