State v. Baker

In State v. Baker, 169 Wis. 2d 49, 485 N.W.2d 237 (1992), the defendant collaterally attacked his second and third criminal operating after revocation (OAR) convictions as enhancing his pending fifth and sixth OAR offenses. See Baker, 169 Wis. 2d at 56-58. He contended that the second conviction was obtained in violation of his constitutional right to counsel, see Baker, 169 Wis. 2d at 58, and the third conviction was obtained in violation of his constitutional right to enter a knowing, voluntary and intelligent guilty plea, see Baker, 169 Wis. 2d at 71. The Baker court held that a defendant may collaterally attack, on constitutional due process grounds, a prior criminal conviction for OAR in a subsequent OAR proceeding. See Baker, 169 Wis. 2d at 55. "A prior conviction may not be used to ... enhance punishment if the prior conviction was obtained in violation of a constitutional right that would affect the reliability of the prior conviction ...." Baker, 169 Wis. 2d at 70. Baker does not directly address whether a defendant has a right to constitutional due process protections in a civil forfeiture OAR proceeding Nor can it be read to support such a right.