A decision will be made Jan. 22 whether to proceed with the retrial of a Portage man who was convicted of the repeated sexual assault of the same child.
An Oconto County jury found Joshua L. Dickinson, 46, guilty after a two-day trial in November 2021 but he later filed a motion for a retrial on grounds that three Child Protective Services (CPS) reports were never introduced by either the prosecution or defense, that he had ineffective counsel and that the prosecution made improper statements during closing arguments.
The case was filed in 2019 and involves an allegation of repeated assaults in 2015.
Judge Michael Judge ruled in March 2024 that the CPS reports did contain material information and that the defendant was prejudiced by the failure of both sides’ attorneys to provide them in discovery. As a result Judge set aside the jury verdict and ordered a new trial.
The judge declined to rule on the defense arguments alleging ineffective counsel or improper prosecutorial statements, saying withholding the CPS reports was sufficient cause for a new trial.
The new trial is on the calendar for Jan. 23-24. During a final pre-trial conference Jan. 2, Assistant District Attorney Richard Zoellner said he and defense attorney Charles Glynn are still in discussions over a possible plea agreement, and they asked that another final pre-trial conference be scheduled.
That hearing is set for 1 p.m. Jan. 22. Dickinson remains free after posting $5,000 cash bond in March.
wbluhm@newmedia-wi.com
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