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

Wis. Stat. § 939.12 (2026)

Crime defined

✓ current as of July 2026
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939.12939.12 Crime defined. A crime is conduct which is prohibited by state law and punishable by fine or imprisonment or both. Conduct punishable only by a forfeiture is not a crime.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 75 cases (9 in the last 5 years), 1962–2025 · leading case: State v. Sveum, 2002 WI App 105 (Wis. Ct. App. 2002).
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State v. Sveum, 2002 WI App 105 (Wis. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 12× “" Wis. Stat. § 939.12 . 5 Conduct punishable only by a forfeiture is *876 not a crime.”
State v. Delaney, 2003 WI 9 (Wis. 2003). · cites it 6× “Wis. Stat. § 939.12 defines a crime as "conduct which is prohibited by state law and punishable by fine or imprisonment or both.”
State v. Smith, 2005 WI 104 (Wis. 2005). · cites it 7× “We began our analysis in McAllister by noting the definition of "crime" provided for by the legislature in Wis. Stat. § 939.12 . Id. at 535 . Section 939.”
State v. Hauk, 2002 WI App 226 (Wis. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 7× “" Although the definition of crime in Wis. Stat. § 939.12 applies explicitly only in chs.”
State v. Courtney C. Beamon, 2013 WI 47 (Wis. 2013). · cites it 4× “10 (abolishing common law crimes); Wis. Stat. § 939.12 (defining crime as "conduct which is prohibited by state law").”
State v. Daniel S. Iverson, 2015 WI 101 (Wis. 2015). · cites it 4× “81 (2), (2m) (violation of littering statute punishable by forfeiture), with Wis. Stat. § 939.12 ("Conduct punishable only by a forfeiture is not a crime"), and Wis.”
State v. Campbell, 2002 WI App 20 (Wis. Ct. App. 2001). · cites it 7× “The term "crime" is defined in Wis. Stat. § 939.12 as "conduct which is prohibited by state law and punishable by fine or imprisonment or both.”
Dane Cnty. v. McGrew, 2005 WI 130 (Wis. 2005). · cites it 4× “60(2)-(3m); see also Wis. Stat. § 939.12 ("A crime is conduct which is prohibited by state law and punishable by fine or imprisonment or both.”
State v. Carpenter, 508 N.W.2d 69 (Wis. Ct. App. 1993). · cites it 18× “[3] Between the enactment of sec. 939.12, Stats., in 1955, see sec. 1, ch.”
State v. Rabe, 291 N.W.2d 809 (Wis. 1980). · cites it 2× “In support of his argument, the defendant points out that a crime is defined in sec. 939.12, Stats., [12] as conduct, not the resulting consequences of conduct.”
State v. Albright, 298 N.W.2d 196 (Wis. Ct. App. 1980). · cites it 2× “” Section 939.12 provides: “[a] crime is conduct which is prohibited by state law and punishable by fine or imprisonment or both.”
State v. Church, 589 N.W.2d 638 (Wis. Ct. App. 1998). · cites it 4× “" Section 939.12, STATS. (Emphasis added.) [9] We conclude that there is no basis on which we might conclude that the legislature intended more than a single punishment for a single act of enticement of a single child, thus confirming our preliminary conclusion that the two…”
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