WI · jury_instructions
Wis JI-Criminal 601
Instruction Prior to Trial upon a Plea of Not Guilty Joined with a Plea of Not Guilty by Reason of Mental Disease or Defect
The Defendant's Two Pleas
The defendant, (name of defendant), has entered two pleas to the charge of (charge):
not guilty and not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. 1
Two Phase Trial
The law requires that the issues raised by the two pleas be decided in a continuous trial
that is separated into two phases. 2 Your verdict will be taken at the end of each phase. You
are to consider only the issues presented to you during each phase. You are not to consider
any issues other than those presented to you for each verdict.
CONTINUE WITH THE FOLLOWING IF A COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF
THE TWO PHASES IS DESIRED: 3
The First Phase
In the first phase of this trial, you will be asked to determine whether the defendant is
guilty of the charge of (charge). You will make this determination solely upon the facts
which deal with the actual incident alleged in the information. During this first phase, you
will not be asked to determine whether at the time of the incident the defendant was suffering
from mental disease or defect.
If, after the first phase of the trial, you find the defendant not guilty, the trial will be over.
If you find the defendant guilty, the trial will move to a second phase.
The Second Phase
During the second phase, you will be asked to determine whether the defendant is
responsible for criminal conduct. Wisconsin law provides that a person is not responsible for
criminal conduct if, at the time it was committed, the person had a mental disease or defect
and as a result lacked substantial capacity either to appreciate the wrongfulness of the
conduct or to conform the conduct to the requirements of law. If the trial proceeds into this
second phase, you will be instructed more fully as to your duties at that time.
We will now begin the first phase of the trial. I again caution you that this first phase is
concerned solely with the question of whether the defendant committed the crime of
(charge) as set forth in the information.
EVIDENCE TAKEN ON THE ISSUE OF GUILT.
History
Wis JI-Criminal 601 (2011). Release No. 49, 5/2011. © 2011, Regents, Univ. of Wis. Prepared by the Wisconsin Criminal Jury Instructions Committee of the Wisconsin Judicial Conference with the University of Wisconsin Law School; posted by the Wisconsin State Law Library with the University's permission.
Provenance
- Source
- wilawlibrary.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-24
- Edition
- 2026-09-24
- Content hash
3c667b05b1b074301e222d09aa3846108ba5748ba60e1ebd7080fd74e26f95b6
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