MADISON, WI (WTAQ) - The State Claims Board has awarded $25,000 to a Fox Valley man who said he was wrongly convicted.
37-year-old Maxwell Verkuilen was found guilty by a jury in 2004 of sexually assaulting a woman he met at a bar in Appleton. An appeals court ordered a new trial, after Verkuilen's public defender failed to challenge a nurse's testimony at his original trial.
His case was later dropped after the alleged victim refused to release her medical records. Verkuilen served 3 years and a month behind bars.
The Claims Board Tuesday agreed to give him just over $15,000 in compensation, plus $9,600 to pay his post-conviction legal fees.
He originally asked for $450,000. However, state law only allows compensation of $5,000 a year for up to five years. The governor and Legislature can approve more if they wish.
(Story courtesy of Wheeler News Service)