MADISON, WI (WTAQ) - A Fox Valley man asked the State Claims Board today for $450,000 to compensate for what he claimed was a wrongful conviction.
Maxwell Verkuilen, who's now 37, was convicted by a jury in 2004 of sexually assaulting a woman he met at a bar in Appleton.
A state appeals court ordered a second trial in the case, after ruling that Verkuilen's public defender failed to challenge a nurse's testimony. However, the charges were dismissed after the alleged victim refused to release her medical records.
Verkuilen and his lawyer said the state is responsible for the public defender's error -- and the defendant needs to be compensated because the case had no basis.
However, a prosecutor said Verkuilen was never officially exonerated -- and therefore, he shouldn't be paid.
It's not known when the Claims Board will decide whether or not to pay the man.
(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)