Homicide defendant's daughter takes stand

WISCONSIN RAPIDS -- Jurors heard Thursday from the daughter of a Wisconsin Rapids man accused of killing her ex-boyfriend.

Jolynn M. Reinwand told jurors she didn't remember having a key to the home of Dale R. Meister, 35, Wisconsin Rapids, who police say was shot and killed by Joseph B. Reinwand in Meister's mobile home in 2008.

Several witnesses previously testified Jolynn Reinwand had the key, and Vincent Biskupic, special prosecutor handling the Joseph Reinwand case, cited a report from an interview Wisconsin Rapids detectives did with Jolynn Reinwand in which she told them she had a key to Meister's residence and had given it back to his brother after his death.

The key is important, because it demonstrates Joseph Reinwand had access to Meister's mobile home without breaking in, Biskupic said.

"Is there any reason you want to forget that here in front of a jury, under oath?" Biskupic asked Jolynn Reinwand. "You understand your former boyfriend was murdered; he was shot, and your father is on trial here for it."

Jolynn Reinwand and Meister were involved in a custody dispute regarding the child they shared, according to court documents. Prior to his death, Meister told several friends that, if he was found dead, Joseph Reinwand was responsible.

Background on the case:

Jolynn Reinwand verified that, while she was still dating Meister, her father gave her a small handgun that was of the same type later used to kill Meister. She said Reinwand gave it to her for protection while Meister was out of town and then took it back when her then-boyfriend returned.

She testified that after her relationship with Meister ended, he took her three children, including the daughter they shared, for a visit, and then wasn't going to give them back. The incident led to a scene outside Meister's residence.

Following the incident, Jolynn Reinwand filed for a restraining order against Meister, but a judge did not award one. Jolynn Reinwand told detectives her father talked her into getting the restraining order, but she thought it was "dumb."

Biskupic showed Jolynn Reinwand a letter her oldest daughter received from Joseph Reinwand while he was in prison. The letter criticized Jolynn Reinwand for telling her children why their grandfather was incarcerated. He went on to tell the child her mother didn't know the whole story and gave the girl details he previously told authorities he couldn't remember.

On Wednesday, retired Wisconsin Rapids Police Detective-Sgt. Tad Wetterau took the stand while the prosecution presented 14 clips of an interview Wetterau did with Joseph Reinwand on April 11, 2008. In the tapes, Joseph Reinwand repeatedly said he didn't remember anything to do with Meister's death or the burglaries he was convicted of in 2010.

On Thursday morning, one of Joseph Reinwand's two attorneys, David Dickmann, presented Wetterau with transcripts of other interviews done with Joseph Reinwand and went through portions of the transcripts for the jury. Dickmann read sections of the interview transcripts during which Wetterau asked Joseph Reinwand questions, and Reinwand gave definite answers.

Dickmann also pointed out portions of the transcript of the interviews during which Wetterau presented two seemingly contradictory questions. He pointed out places when Wetterau lied to Joseph Reinwand, such as when Wetterau told Joseph Reinwand that Wetterau thought Meister was a bad guy. Wetterau said he made the comments to get a response from Joseph Reinwand.

When asked during the court appearance, Wetterau said Jolynn Reinwand never requested that he get answers from Reinwand about what happened to Meister or whether Meister suffered, things the detective had said to Joseph Reinwand during the interviews.

When Biskupic questioned Wetterau again, Wetterau said he didn't consider his interviews with Joseph Reinwand interrogations. Interrogations often are more confrontational, Wetterau said.

Biskupic asked Wetterau to read portions of the interview transcripts where he didn't lie to Joseph Reinwand. Wetterau wasn't lying when he told Reinwand that Meister said to multiple people Reinwand had threatened to kill him.

Biskupic pointed out that many of the questions and answers between detectives and Joseph Reinwand weren't hypothetical. The questions and answers involving two burglaries were not hypothetical: Joseph Reinwand later pleaded guilty to the burglaries.

Wetterau also wasn't lying when he said Reinwand's daughter and son said Reinwand had a small handgun similar to one that killed Meister, Biskupic pointed out.

A Wisconsin state prison inmate, Jesus Rodriguez, also took the stand Thursday. Rodriguez stayed in the same receiving unit with Joseph Reinwand in the prison system.

Rodriguez said Joseph Reinwand spoke about Meister a lot. Reinwand told Rodriguez Meister assaulted children, and no one would do anything about it, so Joseph Reinwand took care of it himself.

Rodriguez said he didn't believe Joseph Reinwand at first, but then Reinwand showed Rodriguez a printout of a story about Meister.

Rodriguez testified Reinwand said he grabbed Meister by the throat, choked him and then shot him.

When asked, Rodriguez said he didn't get any benefit or shortened time for going to authorities with the information. Rodriguez said he had hoped it would help him get early release, but he chose to testify, even though it didn't.