2021 Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 940 - Crimes against life and bodily security.
940.20 - Battery: special circumstances.

940.20 Battery: special circumstances.

(1) Battery by prisoners. Any prisoner confined to a state prison or other state, county, or municipal detention facility who intentionally causes bodily harm or a soft tissue injury, as defined in s. 946.41 (2) (c), to an officer, employee, visitor, or another inmate of such prison or institution, without his or her consent, is guilty of a Class H felony.

(1g) Battery by certain detained or committed persons. Any person who is placed in a facility under s. 980.04 or 980.065 and who intentionally causes bodily harm to an officer, employee, agent, visitor, or other resident of the facility, without his or her consent, is guilty of a Class H felony.

(1m) Battery by persons subject to certain injunctions.

(a) Any person who is subject to an injunction under s. 813.12 or a tribal injunction filed under s. 813.128 (3g) and who intentionally causes bodily harm to the petitioner who sought the injunction by an act done without the consent of the petitioner is guilty of a Class I felony.

(b) Any person who is subject to an injunction under s. 813.125 and who intentionally causes bodily harm to the petitioner who sought the injunction by an act done without the consent of the petitioner is guilty of a Class I felony.

(2) Battery to fire fighters and commission wardens. Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a fire fighter, as defined in s. 102.475 (8) (b), or to a commission warden, acting in an official capacity and the person knows or has reason to know that the victim is a fire fighter or commission warden, by an act done without the consent of the person so injured, is guilty of a Class H felony.

(2m) Battery to probation, extended supervision and parole agents, community supervision agents, and aftercare agents.

(a) In this subsection:

1. “Aftercare agent" means any person authorized by the department of corrections to exercise control over a juvenile on aftercare.

1m. “Community supervision agent" means any person authorized by the department of corrections to exercise control over a juvenile on community supervision.

2. “Probation, extended supervision and parole agent" means any person authorized by the department of corrections to exercise control over a probationer, parolee or person on extended supervision.

(b) Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a probation, extended supervision, and parole agent, a community supervision agent, or an aftercare agent, acting in an official capacity and the person knows or has reason to know that the victim is a probation, extended supervision and parole agent, a community supervision agent, or an aftercare agent, by an act done without the consent of the person so injured, is guilty of a Class H felony.

(2r) Battery to a nurse.

(a) In this subsection, “nurse" means an individual who is licensed pursuant to s. 441.06 or 441.10.

(b) Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a nurse, or to an individual acting under the supervision of a nurse, who is acting in his or her professional capacity, and the actor knows or has reason to know that the victim is a nurse or an individual acting under the supervision of a nurse, by an act done without the consent of the individual so injured, is guilty of a Class H felony.

(3) Battery to jurors. Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a person who he or she knows or has reason to know is or was a grand or petit juror, and by reason of any verdict or indictment assented to by the person, without the consent of the person injured, is guilty of a Class H felony.

(4) Battery to public officers. Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a public officer in order to influence the action of such officer or as a result of any action taken within an official capacity, without the consent of the person injured, is guilty of a Class I felony.

(5) Battery to technical college district or school district officers and employees.

(a) In this subsection:

1. “School district" has the meaning given in s. 115.01 (3).

2. “Technical college district" means a district established under ch. 38.

(b) Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a technical college district or school district officer or employee acting in that capacity, and the person knows or has reason to know that the victim is a technical college district or school district officer or employee, without the consent of the person so injured, is guilty of a Class I felony.

(6) Battery to public transit vehicle operator, driver or passenger.

(a) In this subsection, “public transit vehicle" means any vehicle used for providing transportation service to the general public.

(b) Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to another under any of the following circumstances is guilty of a Class I felony:

1. The harm occurs while the victim is an operator, a driver or a passenger of, in or on a public transit vehicle.

2. The harm occurs after the offender forces or directs the victim to leave a public transit vehicle.

3. The harm occurs as the offender prevents, or attempts to prevent, the victim from gaining lawful access to a public transit vehicle.

(7) Battery to emergency medical care providers.

(a) In this subsection:

1e. “Ambulance" has the meaning given in s. 256.01 (1t).

1g. “Emergency department" means a room or area in a hospital that is primarily used to provide emergency care, diagnosis or radiological treatment.

2. “Emergency department worker" means any of the following:

a. An employee of a hospital who works in an emergency department.

b. A health care provider, whether or not employed by a hospital, who works in an emergency department.

2d. “Emergency medical responder" has the meaning given in s. 256.01 (4p).

2g. “Emergency medical services practitioner" has the meaning given in s. 256.01 (5).

3. “Health care provider" means any person who is licensed, registered, permitted or certified by the department of health services or the department of safety and professional services to provide health care services in this state.

4. “Hospital” has the meaning given in s. 50.33 (2).

(b) Whoever intentionally causes bodily harm to a health care provider who works in a hospital, an emergency department worker, an emergency medical services practitioner, an emergency medical responder, or an ambulance driver who is acting in an official capacity and who the person knows or has reason to know is a health care provider who works in a hospital, an emergency department worker, an emergency medical services practitioner, an emergency medical responder, or an ambulance driver, by an act done without the consent of the person so injured, is guilty of a Class H felony.

History: 1977 c. 173; 1979 c. 30, 113, 221; 1981 c. 118 s. 9; 1983 a. 189 s. 329 (4); 1989 a. 336; 1993 a. 54, 164, 491; 1995 a. 27 s. 9126 (19); 1995 a. 77, 145, 225, 343; 1997 a. 35, 143, 283; 1999 a. 85; 2001 a. 109; 2005 a. 434; 2007 a. 20 s. 9121 (6) (a); 2007 a. 27, 130; 2011 a. 32, 74; 2015 a. 55, 78, 352; 2017 a. 12; 2019 a. 97; 2021 a. 13.

Resisting or obstructing an officer, s. 946.41, is not a lesser-included offense of battery to a peace officer. State v. Zdiarstek, 53 Wis. 2d 776, 193 N.W.2d 833 (1972).

A county deputy sheriff was not acting in an official capacity under s. 940.205 [now s. 940.20 (2)] when making an arrest outside of his county of employment. State v. Barrett, 96 Wis. 2d 174, 291 N.W.2d 498 (1980).

A prisoner is “confined to a state prison" under sub. (1) when kept under guard at a hospital for treatment. State v. Cummings, 153 Wis. 2d 603, 451 N.W.2d 463 (Ct. App. 1989).

A defendant's commitment to a mental institution upon a finding of not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect rendered him a “prisoner" under sub. (1). State v. Skamfer, 176 Wis. 2d 304, N.W.2d (Ct. App. 1993).

There is no requirement under sub. (2) that the officer/victim be acting lawfully when he or she is hit by a defendant. When an officer was assaulted when doing something within the scope of what the officer was employed to do, the lawfulness of the officer's presence in the house where the defendant hit him was not material to a violation of sub. (2). State v. Haywood, 2009 WI App 178, 322 Wis. 2d 691, 777 N.W.2d 921, 09-0030.