Pleading Not Guilty
If you plead not guilty your case will be scheduled for a pretrial conference. If you enter a plea of not guilty prior to your initial appearance court date you will be scheduled for a pretrial conference with the Town's prosecutor. Details will be provided upon your plea.
Pleading Guilty or No Contest
With a plea of guilty or no contest, the court will report a finding of guilty and impose a forfeiture.
A guilty plea means that you admit that you committed the charged offense. A no contest plea means that you neither admit or nor deny the charge. The difference between the two pleas is significant only if the incident which brings you to court resulted in an injury or damage to someone else's person or property - arising, for example, out of an automobile accident or a fight. If the person who sustained the injury or damage were to sue you for compensation in the circuit court, your plea of guilty court be used against you in the law suit.
Operating While Intoxicated
(OWI) If you are charged with OWI, you have the immediate right to request a jury trial in Dane County Circuit Court. A written request along with the required fees must be made with ten (10) business days of entry of a Not Guilty plea. NOTE: Any citations or complaints arising from the same OWI charge are also transferred to circuit court. Refer to Operating While Under The Influence (OWI).