GOP bill would close 'loophole' allowing killers to evade prosecution if they hide bodies long enough

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A Republican-authored bill would aim to close a loophole in state law that allows killers to avoid charges for hiding the bodies of their victims if investigators take more than six years to find them.

Hiding a corpse is a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 12½ years and a $25,000 fine. Under current state law, the statute of limitations for hiding a corpse expires six years after the crime occurred.

Instead, the bill, authored by Rep. Ron Tusler, R-Harrison, and Sens. Andre Jacque, R-DePere, and Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, delays the statute of limitations until investigators find a hidden body and have the evidence they need.

People can be charged with homicide or other crimes even if a body hasn't been found.

The bill is inspired by a case involving Starkie Swenson, a 67-year-old Neenah man who went missing in August 1983 but whose remains weren't found in High Cliff State Park until nearly 40 years later. Prosecutors had successfully tried John C. Andrews with killing Swenson with his car in a middle school parking lot, but Andrews had refused to say where Swenson's remains were.

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Andrews hit Swenson with his car after discovering Swenson has having an affair with his ex-wife, police said.

Wisconsin man convicted in 1983 killing charged with hiding the corpse years later

It wasn't until two hikers discovered a leg bone in a secluded area of High Cliff State Park in September 2021 that the Calumet County Sheriff's Office identified Swenson's remains. But by then, the six-year statute of limitations on hiding a corpse had long passed, meaning Andrews couldn't be charged with it.

Andrews was instead charged with misdemeanor obstructing an officer for denying knowledge of the whereabouts of Swenson's remains. Andrews served 16 months in prison for the crime after pleading the charge down to homicide by negligent use of a vehicle.

The statute of limitations allowed Swenson's killer to evade full accountability by not cooperating with police on the whereabouts of his remains, lawmakers in a co-sponsorship memo.

"Murder victims' remains can be hidden for years, sometimes decades, before they're discovered. The very purpose of the 'hiding a corpse' statute is to punish those who try to avoid justice, but currently, the law rewards them instead," the bill's authors wrote. "While this legislation cannot change the outcome for Starkie Swenson's family, it will prevent future offenders from exploiting this legal gap. By fixing this loophole, we protect the integrity of our justice system and give victims and their families the full justice they deserve."

The bill would not prevent investigators and prosecutors from charging and trying a defendant until they find the body.

It's unclear whether Gov. Tony Evers would sign it, as typically the only bills that get signed are passed with bipartisan support. The bill's authors have until early September to add Democrats as co-sponsors.

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State Government Reporter

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