[WI] What does the DOC do about people absconding?
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A quick overview:
- Once someone is placed on extended supervision, the DOC’s jurisdiction generally runs until the person’s maximum discharge date (set at sentencing).
- If a person absconds during extended supervision, Wisconsin law (Wis. Stat. §302.113(9)(am)) allows the DOC to issue a warrant and to toll (pause) the running of the supervision clock while the person is at large. That means the time spent absconded does not count toward the expiration of the supervision term — effectively the discharge date is extended by the amount of time they were absconded.
- Tolling for absconding is a statutory mechanism, not considered a new sentence or a discretionary “extension.” No separate hearing is required while the person remains at large, and the DOC is not constitutionally required to notify the person during the absconding period because the absconding itself triggers the tolling consequence.
- Constitutional concerns: the Sixth Amendment’s notice/confrontation protections apply in criminal prosecutions and generally don’t apply to an administrative tolling decision. Fourteenth Amendment due process does apply to post-conviction liberty interests, but Wisconsin case law (e.g., State ex rel. Lewis v. Sullivan, 424 N.W.2d 663 (Wis. Ct. App. 1988)) has held that tolling for absconding does not violate due process so long as the person receives proper revocation procedures (including a hearing) once apprehended.
- Practical effect: the DOC may toll supervision for the entire period the individual is absconded — there is no statutory limit on how many times tolling can occur. The supervision clock resumes when the person is returned to custody; any revocation proceedings must comply with procedural safeguards at that time.
Under Wis. Stat. §302.113(9)(am), the DOC may toll the supervision period for the full duration the person is absconded. There’s no statutory cap on how many times this can happen — the discharge date is extended by however long the person remained at large. The controlling case cited here is State ex rel. Lewis v. Sullivan, 424 N.W.2d 663 (Wis. Ct. App. 1988).
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In Wisconsin, if someone absconds while on extended supervision and stays absconded past their maximum discharge date, what procedure does the Department of Corrections follow to extend that person’s maximum discharge date while they’re still absconded? Also, doesn’t the DOC have to give the absconded individual notice of any hearing that extends their maximum discharge date while they’re absconding? If they fail to give notice, isn’t that a Sixth Amendment notice issue or a Fourteenth Amendment due process violation?
It sounds like a complex Wisconsin issue. Have you already consulted a lawyer about this?
No.
Can you give more details about the specific circumstances surrounding the individual who absconded?
I don’t know.
Is there anything else the lawyer should know before I connect you?
Yes.
Hi, I'll be helping you today.
Thanks. I'm also wondering how many times the DOC can extend the maximum discharge date while the person is absconded, and by how long. What statutes and case law apply?
A quick overview:
- Once someone is placed on extended supervision, the DOC’s jurisdiction generally runs until the person’s maximum discharge date (set at sentencing).
- If a person absconds during extended supervision, Wisconsin law (Wis. Stat. §302.113(9)(am)) allows the DOC to issue a warrant and to toll (pause) the running of the supervision clock while the person is at large. That means the time spent absconded does not count toward the expiration of the supervision term — effectively the discharge date is extended by the amount of time they were absconded.
- Tolling for absconding is a statutory mechanism, not considered a new sentence or a discretionary “extension.” No separate hearing is required while the person remains at large, and the DOC is not constitutionally required to notify the person during the absconding period because the absconding itself triggers the tolling consequence.
- Constitutional concerns: the Sixth Amendment’s notice/confrontation protections apply in criminal prosecutions and generally don’t apply to an administrative tolling decision. Fourteenth Amendment due process does apply to post-conviction liberty interests, but Wisconsin case law (e.g., State ex rel. Lewis v. Sullivan, 424 N.W.2d 663 (Wis. Ct. App. 1988)) has held that tolling for absconding does not violate due process so long as the person receives proper revocation procedures (including a hearing) once apprehended.
- Practical effect: the DOC may toll supervision for the entire period the individual is absconded — there is no statutory limit on how many times tolling can occur. The supervision clock resumes when the person is returned to custody; any revocation proceedings must comply with procedural safeguards at that time.
Under Wis. Stat. §302.113(9)(am), the DOC may toll the supervision period for the full duration the person is absconded. There’s no statutory cap on how many times this can happen — the discharge date is extended by however long the person remained at large. The controlling case cited here is State ex rel. Lewis v. Sullivan, 424 N.W.2d 663 (Wis. Ct. App. 1988).
If the DOC can keep tolling until apprehension, what will the person’s new maximum discharge date be? For example, if someone had 18 months left on extended supervision when they absconded, what will their discharge date be when they’re apprehended or turn themselves in — how much supervision will they have left?
Yes — under Wisconsin law the DOC can toll the supervision period for the time the person is absconded, effectively stopping the clock until the person is returned to custody. So if someone had 18 months remaining when they absconded, they would still have 18 months remaining upon return; the new maximum discharge date is calculated by adding the absconded time to the original end date (i.e., the clock picks up where it left off).
