Gaertner v. State

The defendant’s conviction is first challenged on the ground the circuit court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction because secs. 954.01 and 954.02, Stats., are unconstitutional in that they permit a complaint which is to be the basis for a warrant to be made before a clerk of the county court, who is not qualified to determine probable cause and hence the complaint is void. In State ex rel. White v. Simpson (1965), 28 Wis. (2d) 590, 137 N. W. (2d) 391, we held that an arrest warrant may be issued upon a complaint only by an impartial magistrate upon the showing of probable cause and the…