WASHBURN COUNTY – The Court has dismissed a sexual assault case that was filed in Washburn County Circuit Court in 2014 against Adam Vice.
In 2014, a criminal complaint was filed in Washburn County Circuit Court charging Adam Vice with sexual assault of a child. The case went to the Court of Appeals and then was sent back for further litigation in Circuit Court.
Following that, the case was later sent to the Supreme Court for further consideration.
The Supreme Court returned the case to Circuit Court after reversing a prior decision by the Court of Appeals which would have suppressed statements that Vice made to law enforcement officers while being interviewed.
In July 2021, a 4-day-jury-trial was scheduled regarding the case. The trial was to be held in February 2022.
Online circuit court records show that a hearing was held in January 2022 at which the Court heard from the State regarding a conflict. The Court also heard from the Defense Counsel for Adam Vice. The jury trial was removed from the Court’s calendar.
The Court held another hearing on February 8, 2022, regarding the case, and the Court again heard from both the State and Defense Counsel for Adam Vice. Defense Counsel argued that the case should be dismissed due to failure to prosecute. The Court found that based on the record, the case should be dismissed without prejudice.
On Wednesday, February 9, 2022, DrydenWire contacted the Washburn County District Attorney seeking comment on the motion to dismiss this case. District Attorney Aaron Marcoux provided the following statement via email to our inquiry which you can read in its entirety below.
Dear Mr. Dryden (DrydenWire),
I am writing in response to your inquiry regarding the State of Wisconsin’s desire to comment on the motion to dismiss State v. Adam Vice. The State stood mute regarding the defenses motion to dismiss for two reasons. First, the Washburn County District Attorney’s Office suffered from an un-waivable ethical conflict due to a staff members previous employment. This meant the State could not act on the case in any manner other than to explain the conflict to the court. Second, the victim’s family determined dismissal of the case was in the best interest of the victim. Thus, to honor the victim and their family as well as ensuring the Washburn County District Attorney’s Office acts ethically in everything that it does, the State stood mute.
- Sincerely, Aaron Marcoux, Washburn County District Attorney.
Last Update: Feb 09, 2022 2:06 pm CST
