Madison WI Maintaining a Dwelling Lawyer - Maintaining a Dwelling Attorney

            Wisconsin drug laws make it a crime to keep or maintain any structure which is resorted to by people using a controlled substance or manufacturing, keeping or delivering a controlled substance in violation of the Wisconsin drug laws.  To prove such a charge, the state needs to prove that the defendant kept or maintained the place or structure.  What exactly this includes is not well-defined in the Wisconsin drug laws.  It does not require proof of ownership, but it does require proof that the defendant exercised management or control of the place.  The state also needs to prove that the place in question was resorted to by people illegally using controlled substances or it was used for manufacturing, keeping or delivering a controlled substance.  “Using” a controlled substance does not necessarily require proof that the controlled substance was ingested.  Mere possession of a controlled substance in violation of the Wisconsin drug laws may be enough.  Whether the conduct in a particular case amounts to “keeping” may be a defense.   In State v. Slagle, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals found that evidence having cocaine in a vehicle one time was not enough to prove “keeping.”   

Finally, the state needs to prove that the defendant knew that the place was resorted to by people using controlled substances in violation of Wisconsin law.  Even though the offense is often referred to as maintaining a dwelling, the state does not need to prove that people actually lived in the place or structure.

If you face a maintaining a controlled substance charge in Wisconsin, contact Madison drug defense lawyer Robert T. Ruth to review possible defenses in your case.