Gerald Turner PC: Fox 11 Online
FOND DU LAC, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Gerald Turner is not entitled to another ‘probable cause hearing,’ a judge ruled Tuesday, as the state’s efforts to have the “Halloween Killer” committed as a sexual predator slowly continues. A trial is the expected next step in the case.
Turner, 76, was convicted of sexually assaulting and killing 9-year-old Lisa Ann French while she was trick-or-treating in Fond du Lac in 1973. Her body was found a few days later in the town of Taycheedah.
His prison term is complete, but the state filed suit in 2018, seeking to have Turner deemed a sexually violent offender, and ordered to remain at a secure mental health facility under the Chapter 980 sexual predator law. His attorneys have opposed the request and want him released. Seven years later, that process is still going on.
Defense attorney Robert Peterson argued circumstances and evidence have changed since probable cause was found in 2022, meaning a new hearing is justified. But Assistant Attorney General Devra Ayala said the state opposes a new hearing.
In court Tuesday, Judge Anthony Nehls said because the defense motion wasn’t filed until 26 months after the probable cause hearing, it was “untimely” and was denied. He also cited another statutory provision in denying the motion.
The attorneys will work with the court to schedule a trial. A four-day trial is planned.
Turner is currently held at the Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center in Mauston.
After serving 17 years in prison for a 38-year sentence, Turner was released from prison in 1992 but returned to prison that same year following a court decision challenging calculation of time served. Turner was again released on parole in 1998 but returned to prison in 2003 for 15 years after pornographic images were found on his computer.
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