Assembly Bill 89 introduces new provisions regarding the prosecution and penalties for property theft and retail theft in Wisconsin. The bill allows for the aggregation of the value of items taken from multiple theft violations committed by the same individual within a six-month period. Specifically, it creates new sections in the statutes—943.20 (5) and 943.50 (6)—which state that the total value from these multiple violations can be combined for charging and penalty determinations. This means that if a defendant commits several thefts within this timeframe, they can be prosecuted for a single crime based on the aggregated value of the stolen items.

Additionally, the bill establishes that if two or more violations are prosecuted as a single crime, the trial can occur in any county where the violations took place, and the prosecutor will have exclusive jurisdiction over these cases, as outlined in the new sections 971.19 (2m) and 971.36 (5). This legislative change aims to streamline the prosecution process for theft crimes and potentially impose harsher penalties based on the cumulative value of stolen property.