Cnty. of Lafayette v. Humphrey
Cnty. of Lafayette v. Humphrey
Opinion of the Court
¶ 1 Ian Humphrey appeals the judgment entered against him in the amount of $200.50 after he was found guilty following a court trial of operating a motor vehicle while suspended. For the reasons discussed below, I affirm the judgment.
¶ 2 As a preliminary matter, I briefly address Humphrey's complaint that the absence of transcripts of the circuit court proceedings renders this appeal meaningless. It was Humphrey's "responsibility to ensure completion of the appellate record," Jensen v. McPherson ,
¶ 3 After filing this appeal, Humphrey moved the circuit court for waiver of fees for the production of transcripts. In a written decision, the circuit court found Humphrey indigent but denied the motion because Humphrey had failed to state any arguable basis for appeal. See WIS. STAT. § 814.29 ; State ex rel. Girouard v. Circuit Ct. for Jackson Cty ,
¶ 4 I now turn to the remaining arguments that Humphrey makes in this appeal. First, Humphrey argues that the circuit court erroneously denied his request for a jury trial. More specifically, Humphrey argues that the court did not give him the opportunity to correct his failure to support his request for a jury trial with an affidavit of indigency as required by WIS. STAT. § 814.29(1)(b). The record reflects that the court denied Humphrey's request "for reasons stated on the record" at a hearing on March 8, 2016. However, as noted above, the record does not contain a transcript of that hearing. When the record is incomplete in regard to an issue on appeal, this court assumes that the missing material supports the circuit court's ruling. See Fiumefreddo v. McLean ,
¶ 5 Second, Humphrey argues that the circuit court erroneously entered a default judgment when in fact Humphrey was present at and participated in the trial. He argues that the default judgment resulted in the erroneous denial of his motion to waive fees for the production of transcripts, and that the default judgment will "harm [him] in the future." His argument as to the effect of the default judgment on his fee-waiver motion fails because the apparent discrepancy between the default judgment and his appearance at trial was already addressed by this court in his first appeal, and our supreme court denied review; therefore, he cannot relitigate that issue in this appeal. See Univest Corp. ,
¶ 6 Third, Humphrey makes a series of arguments addressed to the sufficiency of the evidence. He argues that the circuit court's finding of guilt was not supported by "clear and convincing evidence" and "was inconsistent with the evidence." As this court stated in an earlier order in this appeal, if the appellant does not provide a transcript, this court assumes it supports every fact essential to the circuit court ruling. Austin v. Ford Motor Co. ,
¶ 7 Humphrey also challenges the circuit court's credibility and weight-of-evidence determinations. However, this court defers to circuit courts on credibility and weight-of-evidence determinations. See State v. Randall ,
¶ 8 Humphrey also argues that a document he obtained after trial shows that his license was not suspended on the date he was charged. However, Humphrey does not establish that the document is part of the record that was before the circuit court, that he sought any relief in the circuit court based on that document, or that the court made any findings of fact related to that document, and, therefore, I do not consider this argument on appeal. See Shoreline Park Pres., Inc. v. Wisconsin DOA ,
¶ 9 Finally, Humphrey suggests that certain state statutes governing drivers' licenses violate his substantive due process rights. I do not consider this argument because it is neither developed nor supported by legal authority. See State v. Flynn ,
¶ 10 For the reasons stated, the judgment is affirmed.
By the Court. -Judgment affirmed.
This opinion will not be published. See WIS. STAT. RULE 809.23(1)(b)4.
This appeal is decided by one judge pursuant to
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.