David Villareal is led out of a Brown County courtroom after his sentencing July 21, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Former Green Bay teacher David Villareal’s conviction for sexually assaulting students should stand, the state said in a new legal brief.
Villareal, now 50, was convicted by a jury in April 2023 of four charges, including three of first-degree child sexual assault for incidents in 2015 and 2016. The four girls were students at Baird Elementary School and aged seven and eight at the time. Villareal was sentenced to 50 years in prison.
Villareal appealed, arguing the claims of one of the victims were significantly different than the other two and the allegations should not have been tried together.
In the 26-page brief filed Thursday, Assistant Attorney General Alexander Schmidt contends because Villareal didn’t raise the issue at trial, he’s unable to raise it to the appeals court.
Additionally, the judge’s decision to join the cases was proper because the allegations were of similar character, were connected together in place and scheme and evidence of the separate cases would have been admissible at separate trials, Schmidt wrote.
No oral arguments have been requested. It will likely be several months before a decision is reached.
Comments