Opinion ID: 181013
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Waiver is an Adequate and Independent State Law Ground

Text: Promotor contends that the state court's finding of waiver was not an adequate and independent state law ground because Wisconsin's application of waiver law was unsettled at the time of his sentencing. He further argues that even if the law were settled, cause and prejudice precludes a finding of default. We reject these arguments. Promotor accurately argues that a procedural default does not bar consideration of a federal claim unless the procedure is a firmly established and regularly followed state practice. Smith v. McKee, 598 F.3d 374, 382 (7th Cir.2010). Further, the state rule at issue must have been consistently applied at the time of the alleged default. Franklin v. Gilmore, 188 F.3d 877, 882 (7th Cir.1999). In support of his position that waiver law was not firmly established in Wisconsin in 2003, Promotor offers State v. Groth, which states: Whether, given the paramount importance of the integrity of the sentencing process, waiver may be invoked to preclude a defendant's challenge to a sentencing based on inaccurate information remains unclear; the cases the parties cite simply do not say. 258 Wis.2d 889, 655 N.W.2d 163, 172 (Wis.Ct.App.2002) (internal citations and quotations omitted), abrogated on other grounds by State v. Tiepelman, 291 Wis.2d 179, 717 N.W.2d 1 (2006). In Groth, the prosecutor repeatedly asserted, without any support in the record, that the defendant beat his pregnant girlfriend. Because there was no support in the record for the inflammatory statements and the court apparently relied on them, the court found that the integrity of the sentencing process required resentencing. Groth, 655 N.W.2d at 173. Groth is distinguishable from this case for significant reasons. The inaccurate information in Groth came from the prosecutor, not the defense. And there was no factual basis for the information, but here, the information was submitted in a pre-sentence report and reviewed before filing. The most important aspect of Groth, though, is that the court decided that the interests of justice required excusing the waiver. Groth aligns with the regular practice of Wisconsin courts, which have consistently found that a party who fails to object at the trial court waives the right to later appeal that issue unless justice so requires. This general principle was described in State v. Holt : The general rule that an objection not made to the trial court is waived is rooted in principles of efficient judicial administration. Those principles demand that convictions remain in repose unless error has been committed or an injustice has been done. 128 Wis.2d 110, 382 N.W.2d 679, 686 (Wis.Ct. App.1985), superseded by statute on other grounds by WIS. STAT. § 940.225(7). See also State v. Boshcka, 178 Wis.2d 628, 496 N.W.2d 627, 632 (Wis.Ct.App.1992) (unobjected-to errors are generally considered waived; and the rule applies to both evidentiary and constitutional errors.) And this rule has been repeatedly applied to defendants, like Promotor, who fail to object to allegedly inadmissible or inaccurate information. See, e.g., State v. Gove, 148 Wis.2d 936, 437 N.W.2d 218, 218 (1989) (defendant who actively contributed to what he now claims was trial court error waived right to contest error); Handel v. State, 74 Wis.2d 699, 247 N.W.2d 711, 714 (1976) (court did not err in considering facts in pre-sentence report that were not challenged by defendant). As a general rule, Wisconsin courts find waiver if information is not objected to at the trial court. And this was true in 2003 at the time of Promotor's sentencing. But there is a difference between a consistent application and an absolute application. A regular practice may still, in the interest of justice, allow room for flexibility. See, e.g., State v. Leitner, 247 Wis.2d 195, 633 N.W.2d 207, 215 (Wis.Ct.App. 2001) (choosing to ignore the ... waiver rule because the case presented an important recurring issue). Wisconsin courts have regularly followed the rule that information that is not contested at trial cannot be objected to later. The exceptions do not disprove the rule. We find that Wisconsin waiver law was applied in a consistent and principled way, and therefore constitutes an adequate and independent state law ground that cannot be reviewed absent cause and prejudice.