Charged with first degree intentional homicide in Wisconsin?

First-Degree Intentional Homicide is a Class A Felony. It is the most severe charge a person could face in Wisconsin. If convicted, the maximum penalty for a First-Degree Intentional Homicide is life imprisonment.

To be found guilty of First-Degree Intentional Homicide, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you intentionally killed another human. There are many potential defenses to a charge of First-Degree Intentional Homicide.

For example, you may argue that you were not the person that killed the other person. Since 1989, there have been over 2,400 individuals in the United States alone who have been exonerated from convictions for crimes they never committed. In many of these cases, DNA evidence has been used to prove the innocence of innocent men and women. Our firm has worked with some of the leading DNA analysts in the world to understand how DNA evidence can be used to prove our client’s innocence. Additionally, our firm is highly experienced working with other forms of forensic evidence that are often critical in homicide cases, including ballistics, pathology (autopsy investigations), crime scene reconstruction, and challenges to inaccurate eyewitness identification evidence. This background in forensic science is often crucial to understanding the weaknesses in the State’s case and helping prove our clients’ innocence.

Another common defense is self-defense. Our firm has worked with leading national experts, including experts in the use of deadly force, toxicology (the study the affect of drugs and alcohol on the human body), crime scene reconstruction, and forensic psychology to build cases to support our client’s claims of innocence in cases involving self-defense. Please refer to The Law of Self-Defense in Wisconsin for further explanation.

Finally, our law firm collaborates with experienced investigators to help build our client’s defense. The investigators we collaborate with on these cases are experienced, retired law enforcement officers who are extremely well trained in scene preservation, evidence collection, and homicide investigation. It is very common for errors to be made by inexperienced law enforcement officers investigating a crime scene for a number of reasons. Our investigators excel at identifying evidence that has been overlooked and misunderstood by police, and communicating with key witnesses.

Our law firm has a track record of success defending clients accused of First Degree Intentional Homicide. Attorney Mehlos began working on numerous homicide cases while working with the Wisconsin Innocence Project and has continued to do so in private practice. Our firm looks at these cases from the perspective of our clients, and takes very seriously the incredible impact that these cases have on our client and their family’s lives. We have the training, experience, and relationships to connect with the best experts and investigators and give you or your loved one the best possible defense.