Case Name: In the Matter of a John Doe Proceeding Commenced by Affidavit Dated July 25, 2001: Custodian of Records for the Legislative Technology Services Bureau, Petitioner, v. State of Wisconsin and the Honorable Sarah B. O'Brien, presiding, Respondents
Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Wisconsin
Decision Date: 2004-12-15
Citations: 277 Wis. 2d 75
Docket Number: No. 02-3063-W
Parties: In the Matter of a John Doe Proceeding Commenced by Affidavit Dated July 25, 2001: Custodian of Records for the Legislative Technology Services Bureau, Petitioner, v. State of Wisconsin and the Honorable Sarah B. O'Brien, presiding, Respondents.
Judges: ¶ 3. LOUIS B. BUTLER, JR., J., did not participate.
Reporter: Wisconsin Reports Second
Volume: 277
Pages: 75–82

Head Matter:
In the Matter of a John Doe Proceeding Commenced by Affidavit Dated July 25, 2001: Custodian of Records for the Legislative Technology Services Bureau, Petitioner, v. State of Wisconsin and the Honorable Sarah B. O'Brien, presiding, Respondents.
Supreme Court
No. 02-3063-W.
Decided December 15, 2004.
2004 WI 149
(Also reported in 689 N.W.2d 908.)

Opinion:
PER CURIAM.
¶ 1. The State has moved for reconsideration of portions of our opinion in the above-captioned matter. Attention has been called to our application and construction of Wis. Stat. § 968.135 (2001-02) during the John Doe proceeding and to our application of Fourth Amendment principles to the subpoena that was before us. In response to the motion, as clarification of our discussion of § 968.135, we withdraw paragraphs 53-55 from the opinion issued June 9, 2004 and in their place substitute paragraphs 53-55 below.
¶ 53 Because a John Doe proceeding is a criminal investigative tool, Unnamed Person No. 1, 260 Wis. 2d 653, ¶ 22, we turn to Wis. Stat. § 968.135, entitled "Subpoena for documents." Section 968.135 requires a showing of probable cause to believe that the documents sought by the subpoena duces tecum will produce evidence relevant to potentially criminal activity. While this probable cause determination differs from the purpose for which a John Doe proceeding is commenced, that is, to decide whether there is probable cause to believe that a crime actually has been committed and who committed it, see Reimann, 214 Wis. 2d at 621, 624, the question remains how the probable cause required by § 968.135 may be shown in a John Doe proceeding.
¶ 54 In Oklahoma Press Publishing Co. v. Walling, 327 U.S. 186 (1946), the United States Supreme Court explained that probable cause, as literally required in the case of a warrant, is shown in the context of a subpoena duces tecum if: (1) the investigation is for a lawfully authorized purpose and (2) the documents requested are relevant to the inquiry. See Walling, 327 U.S. at 209; see also Washington, 83 Wis. 2d at 841. In the case of a John Doe proceeding, the proceeding is lawfully authorized if the judge determines that the complainant makes a threshold showing sufficient to establish that the complainant has an objectively reasonable belief that a crime has been committed. Reimann, 214 Wis. 2d at 623. With this judicial determination, any document requested, in order to be relevant to the inquiry, must focus on the factual assertions made to the judge at the commencement of the proceeding. See Walling, 327 U.S. at 209; Washington, 83 Wis. 2d at 841. The necessary link between the documents requested and the suspected criminal activity under investigation is thus shown, affording probable cause to believe that the documents sought will produce evidence relevant to potentially criminal activity, as required by Wis. Stat. § 968.135.
¶ 55 Accordingly, we conclude that any subsequent subpoena duces tecum issued in this John Doe proceeding satisfies the requirements of Wis. Stat. § 968.26 and 968.135 and the constitutional concerns regarding an overly broad subpoena explained above, when the affidavit submitted to request the subpoena for documents: (1) limits the requested data to the subject matter described in the John Doe petition, Reimann, 214 Wis. 2d at 622; (2) shows that the data requested is relevant to the subject matter of the John Doe proceeding, Washington, 83 Wis. 2d at 843; (3) specifies the data requested with reasonable particularity, Walling, 327 U.S. at 209; Hale, 201 U.S. at 77; and (4) covers a reasonable period of time, Washington, 83 Wis. 2d at 844. Additionally, all of the communications to the John Doe judge must be made a part of the record. See id. at 824-25.
¶ 2. The motion for reconsideration is denied without costs.
¶ 3. LOUIS B. BUTLER, JR., J., did not participate.
All subsequent references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2001-02 version unless otherwise indicated.
Wisconsin Stat. § 968.135 provides in relevant part:
Upon the request of the . . district attorney and upon a showing of probable cause under s. 968.12, a court shall issue a subpoena requiring the production of documents, as specified in s. 968.13(2).