Wis. Stat. » CHAPTER 939 — CRIMES — GENERAL PROVISIONS
Wisconsin Statutes

Wis. Stat. § 939.10 (2026)

Common law crimes abolished; common law rules preserved

✓ current as of July 2026
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939.10939.10 Common law crimes abolished; common law rules preserved. Common law crimes are abolished. The common law rules of criminal law not in conflict with chs. 939 to 951 are preserved.
939.10 HistoryHistory: 1979 c. 89; 1987 a. 332 s. 64; 2007 a. 97.
939.10 AnnotationThe common law privilege to forcibly resist an unlawful arrest is abrogated. State v. Hobson, 218 Wis. 2d 350, 577 N.W.2d 825 (1998), 96-0914.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 23 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1962–2023 · leading case: State v. Courtney C. Beamon, 2013 WI 47 (Wis. 2013).
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State v. Courtney C. Beamon, 2013 WI 47 (Wis. 2013). · cites it 8× “See Wis. Stat. § 939.10 (abolishing common law crimes); Wis.”
State v. Williquette, 385 N.W.2d 145 (Wis. 1986). · cites it 8× “She notes that sec. 939.10, Stats., specifically abolished common law crimes.”
State v. Picotte, 2003 WI 42 (Wis. 2003). · cites it 8× “[31] Nor is Wis. Stat. § 939.10 a prohibition on judicial development of common-law criminal rules.”
State v. Hobson, 577 N.W.2d 825 (Wis. 1998). · cites it 7× “She argued that Wis. Stat. § 939.10 [13] also protects the common law privilege to forcibly resist an unlawful arrest, and based on Wis.”
State v. Maltese Lavele Williams, 2015 WI 75 (Wis. 2015). · cites it 4× “(citing Wis. Stat. §§ 939.10 , 939.12). ¶48 Second, we acknowledged that faulty jury instructions are subject to harmless error review.”
Krysta Sutterfield v. City of Milwaukee, 751 F.3d 542 (7th Cir. 2014). · cites it 2× “”) (citing Wis. Stat. § 939.10 ). 8 A writ of capias is essentially a writ commanding an officer to take a named individual into custody, typically when he has failed to appear or failed to comply with a judgment.”
State v. Matthew R. Steffes, 2013 WI 53 (Wis. 2013). · cites it 4× “These statutes criminalize 1 Wis. Stat. § 939.10 . See also State v. Genova, 77 Wis.”
State v. Esser, 115 N.W.2d 505 (Wis. 1962). · cites it 4× “(2) This definition was in any event a common-law rule of criminal law in force here in 1955 when the legislature enacted the Criminal Code, [4] and under sec. 939.10, Stats., it must remain in force and unchanged until modified by the legislature.”
Henes v. Morrissey, 533 N.W.2d 802 (Wis. 1995). · cites it 4× “Section 939.10, Stats. 1991-92, declares that "[c]ommon-law crimes have been abolished in Wisconsin.”
State v. Genova, 252 N.W.2d 380 (Wis. 1977). · cites it 2× “Sec. 939.10, Stats. 7 We must look to the Wisconsin legislature’s definition of a crime, not the common-law definition.”
State v. Lee, 321 N.W.2d 108 (Wis. 1982). · cites it 2× “Sec. 939.10, Stats. We must look to the Wisconsin legislature's definition of a crime, not the common-law definition.”
State v. Borrell, 482 N.W.2d 883 (Wis. 1992). “13 of the Wisconsin Constitution states, "such parts of the common law as are now in force in the territory of Wisconsin, not inconsistent with this constitution, shall be and continue part of the law of this state until altered or suspended by the legislature.”
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