United States v. Shane Sahm

Hamilton, Circuit Judge.

These consolidated appeals represent another application of the "categorical approach" for applying recidivist statutes. The specific question in these appeals is whether convictions under a portion of the Wisconsin burglary statute, Wis. Stat. § 943.10 (1m)(a), qualify as convictions for violent felonies under the federal Armed Career Criminal Act ("ACCA"), 18 U.S.C. § 924 (e)(1). The outcome of these appeals depends on whether the Wisconsin statute is "divisible" or not, which depends in turn on the sometimes slippery distinction between a crime's "elements" and…