State v. Muhammad Sarfraz , 356 Wis. 2d 460 ( 2014 )


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    2014 WI 78
    SUPREME COURT            OF   WISCONSIN
    CASE NO.:              2012AP337-CR
    COMPLETE TITLE:        State of Wisconsin,
    Plaintiff-Respondent-Petitioner,
    v.
    Muhammad Sarfraz,
    Defendant-Appellant.
    REVIEW OF A DECISION OF THE COURT OF APPEALS
    Reported at 
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    , 
    832 N.W.2d 346
                                       (Ct. App. 2013 – Published)
    PDC No.: 
    2013 WI App 57
    OPINION FILED:         July 22, 2014
    SUBMITTED ON BRIEFS:
    ORAL ARGUMENT:         December 18, 2013
    SOURCE OF APPEAL:
    COURT:              Circuit
    COUNTY:             Milwaukee
    JUDGE:              Dennis R. Cimpl
    JUSTICES:
    CONCURRED:          ZIEGLER, ROGGENSACK, JJ., concur. (Opinion
    filed.)
    DISSENTED:
    NOT PARTICIPATING:   PROSSER, J., did not participate.
    ATTORNEYS:
    For      the    plaintiff-respondent-petitioner,    the   cause   was
    argued by Daniel J. O’Brien, assistant attorney general, with
    whom on the briefs was J.B. Van Hollen, attorney general.
    For the defendant-respondent, there was a brief by Jason D.
    Luczak, Raymond M. Dall’Osto, and Gimbel, Reilly, Guerin & Brown
    LLP, Milwaukee, and oral argument by Jason D. Luczak.
    
    2014 WI 78
                                                               NOTICE
    This opinion is subject to further
    editing and modification.   The final
    version will appear in the bound
    volume of the official reports.
    No.       2012AP337-CR
    (L.C. No.   10CF2453)
    STATE OF WISCONSIN                       :            IN SUPREME COURT
    State of Wisconsin
    Plaintiff-Respondent-Petitioner,
    FILED
    v.                                                   JUL 22, 2014
    Muhammad Sarfraz,                                             Diane M. Fremgen
    Clerk of Supreme Court
    Defendant-Appellant.
    REVIEW of a decision of the Court of Appeals.             Reversed and
    cause remanded.
    ¶1     MICHAEL J. GABLEMAN, J.   The petitioner,            State        of
    Wisconsin, seeks review of a published court of appeals decision1
    that reversed the circuit court's judgment of conviction against
    the defendant, Muhammad     Sarfraz,   and remanded the case for a
    new trial.      The court of appeals determined that the circuit
    court had erred by denying Sarfraz's motion to admit evidence of
    a prior sexual relationship with the complainant, I.N., because
    1
    State v. Sarfraz, 
    2013 WI App 57
    , 
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    , 
    832 N.W.2d 346
    (reversing order of the circuit court for Milwaukee
    County, Dennis R. Cimpl, Judge).
    No.   2012AP337-CR
    the evidence fit within a statutory exception to Wisconsin's
    rape shield law, Wis. Stat. § 972.11(2)(b)1 (2009-10).2
    ¶2    We hold that the circuit court's refusal to admit the
    proffered evidence of the prior sexual relationship was proper
    under Wisconsin's rape shield law, Wis. Stat. § 972.11.                                Such
    evidence is admissible only if the following three criteria are
    satisfied:       1)    the    proffered        evidence     relates         to    sexual
    activities between the defendant and the complainant; 2) the
    evidence is material to a fact at issue in the case; and 3) the
    evidence    is    of    sufficient     probative      value      to     outweigh       its
    inflammatory and prejudicial nature.                  State v. DeSantis, 
    155 Wis. 2d 774
    , 785, 
    456 N.W.2d 600
    (1990).                    Here, while we agree
    with the court of appeals that the circuit court improperly
    found that the proffered evidence of prior sexual conduct was
    not   material,        we    nevertheless      conclude      the      circuit      court
    correctly    excluded        the   evidence       because    Sarfraz        failed       to
    establish, under the third DeSantis prong, that the probative
    value of the evidence outweighed its inherent prejudice.
    ¶3    Accordingly, we reverse and remand to the court of
    appeals    for    consideration       of    the    ineffective         assistance        of
    counsel    and    sentencing       arguments      raised    by   Sarfraz         but    not
    previously addressed.
    I.    FACTUAL BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
    2
    All subsequent references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to
    the 2009-10 version unless otherwise indicated.
    2
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    ¶4    Most        of the facts in this case are disputed.                                  The
    parties agree on very little.                      The State and Sarfraz agree that
    he knew I.N. prior to the charged assault, that I.N. and her
    father lived with Sarfraz when they first emigrated here from
    Pakistan, that they later moved to a separate apartment, and
    that on May 15, 2010, Sarfraz came to I.N.'s apartment.                                       While
    he was there, both Sarfraz and I.N. sustained knife wounds, and
    I.N. sustained injuries consistent with strangulation.                                      At some
    point       on     that       date,    Sarfraz         and     I.N.       engaged      in    sexual
    intercourse,            and   after     Sarfraz        left,    I.N.       was    found     in    the
    hallway naked from the waist down, screaming that she had been
    raped.
    ¶5        Apart from these general facts, the parties presented
    vastly different versions of the events that occurred on May 15,
    2010.            The    State    alleged       a       forcible       rape,       while     Sarfraz
    maintained that any sexual contact was consensual.                                     Sarfraz was
    arrested         the     same    day    of    the      alleged       attack,       after     police
    stopped      his        taxicab.        The    State         filed    a    complaint        against
    Sarfraz      charging         him     with    second      degree      sexual       assault       with
    force or violence by use of a dangerous weapon, in violation of
    Wis.    Stat.          §§ 940.225(2)(a),        939.63(1)(b).               Sarfraz       pled    not
    guilty.
    ¶6        Prior to the trial, Sarfraz moved to admit evidence of
    prior sexual conduct between himself and I.N.                                    In his motion,
    Sarfraz asserted that the sexual conduct between himself and
    I.N. was consensual.                He further alleged, "on numerous occasions
    in the days and months preceding the date of the alleged sexual
    3
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    assault, that he and the victim, I.N., engaged in various forms
    of consensual sexual contact."                He contended that his wife would
    support his allegations by testifying that she caught him in bed
    with I.N.          He also stated that two other acquaintances would
    testify that they observed a flirtatious relationship between
    I.N. and Sarfraz.
    ¶7     The      circuit    court       held     an       evidentiary         hearing
    regarding      Sarfraz's       motion    on       November    29,        2010.      At    the
    hearing,       Sarfraz       testified      that     he      had     a     prior     sexual
    relationship with I.N.            He stated that initially when I.N. lived
    with him, he would hug her and "grab" her.                         As the relationship
    progressed, I.N. would lie in bed with him, where they would
    fondle       and     masturbate    one      another,      but      never        engaged    in
    intercourse because of their cultural values.                        Sarfraz explained
    that    in    their    culture,      individuals      did    not     have       intercourse
    outside of marriage.
    ¶8     Sarfraz testified that on one occasion, when he was
    lying    in    bed    with   I.N.,    his     wife    came    home       and     found    them
    together.          I.N. and her father moved out shortly thereafter.
    Sarfraz visited I.N. at her apartment on multiple occasions to
    continue the relationship.
    ¶9     Sarfraz's wife, Riffat Sarfraz, also testified at the
    evidentiary hearing.           She corroborated Sarfraz's testimony about
    catching him in bed with I.N.                     She stated that she came home
    early one day when her daughter was sick, and when she arrived
    home, she found I.N. in bed with Sarfraz.                             Neither one was
    wearing pants.         On another occasion when she came home early due
    4
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    to    a    headache,         she    found    Sarfraz         and    I.N.     in    the       kitchen
    lovingly putting food into each others' mouths.                              These incidents
    upset her and she pressured Sarfraz to make I.N. and her father
    move out of the house.
    ¶10    At the evidentiary hearing Sarfraz also presented the
    testimony of a co-worker, Azmath Uddin.                            Uddin testified that on
    one occasion when he visited Sarfraz's house, he saw Sarfraz
    lying down with I.N. sitting on his lap with his hands around
    her   waist.           On     another     occasion,       he       observed       I.N.       hugging
    Sarfraz from behind while he was cooking.
    ¶11    In response, the State presented I.N. to testify at
    the       hearing.          She    stated    that      she     did    not    have        a    sexual
    relationship with Sarfraz, and that she had viewed him as a
    brother.           She       further      stated       that    she     had    never          touched
    Sarfraz's penis while she was living at his house, that she was
    never alone with him in his bed, and that his wife did not see
    them in bed together.                I.N. and her father moved out after her
    father      got    a     job.       She   stated       that    the    only        times      Sarfraz
    visited her apartment was when he helped with the move and on
    the date of the incident.
    ¶12    After       receiving      the       testimony,      the     circuit          court
    determined         that       a    jury    could       believe       there    was     a       sexual
    relationship, despite I.N.'s denial.                          It noted that without the
    rape shield law, the evidence would be relevant.                                    However, to
    fit within an exception to the rape shield law, the defendant
    needed      to    show       materiality.          The    circuit      court       stated       that
    masturbation           was    far    different        from     forcible      penis-to-vagina
    5
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    intercourse, and it reasoned that the defendant had failed to
    show that the alleged past relationship was material to each of
    the elements of rape.           The circuit court also determined that
    the evidence would be inadmissible under the third prong of the
    DeSantis test.       The circuit court concluded that Sarfraz could
    present evidence about his relationship with I.N., but could not
    present   evidence    regarding     past     sexual   contact.      Thus,   the
    circuit court denied Sarfraz's motion.
    ¶13     When   the   case    proceeded    to   trial,   the    State   again
    presented I.N., who testified that she and her father lived with
    Sarfraz and his family for a couple of months after they moved
    to the United States from Pakistan.            She stated that during that
    time she did not have a romantic relationship with Sarfraz.                 She
    and her father moved out after her father started working.
    ¶14     I.N. testified that at around 10:30 a.m. on May 15,
    2010, she heard a knock on her door.            When she asked who it was,
    the individual responded "Jim."           I.N. explained that Jim was her
    landlord.    When she opened the door, the person on the other
    side was wearing a mask.            He shoved her into the bathroom,
    choked her and said "I'll kill you."               As the man was pulling a
    knife out of his pocket, I.N. managed to push the mask from his
    face and saw that it was Sarfraz.            Then, Sarfraz held the knife
    up to her neck.
    ¶15     As they continued to struggle, Sarfraz set the knife
    on the floor.      I.N. pulled the knife toward her, lifted it up,
    and slashed Sarfraz on the cheek.            I.N. also cut herself on the
    finger.     She testified that blood filled the bathroom floor.
    6
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    After Sarfraz took the knife from her, he strangled her harder,
    tried to hit her, and pulled at her breasts.                    I.N. continued to
    struggle to get free.
    ¶16    I.N. testified that Sarfraz then tied a handkerchief
    around her mouth and told her he was taking her to the bedroom.
    I.N. resisted, trying to pull him toward the front door instead.
    They ended up in the living room.
    ¶17 Once in the living room, Sarfraz threw I.N. onto the
    floor, took off her pants and began to fondle her.                         I.N. kept
    trying to get away from him but was unable to do so.                          Sarfraz
    put a pornographic movie into the DVD player and tried to get
    I.N. to watch it.          She told him she did not want to watch it,
    and he seemed surprised.          I.N. testified that Sarfraz ultimately
    forced her to have vaginal intercourse.
    ¶18    I.N. testified that she was afraid Sarfraz was going
    to kill her, and she tried to leave a note for police by writing
    his name in blood on a newspaper.             After Sarfraz left, I.N. went
    into the hallway and screamed for help.
    ¶19    The jury then heard testimony about the events of that
    day from I.N.'s neighbor, Syed Abdul Bukari.                    He stated that his
    wife had heard loud noises in the hallway and when he went to
    investigate,      he   discovered         I.N.       standing     half-naked       and
    bloodied, crying and yelling that someone had raped her.
    ¶20    The     State     also    presented        testimony     from      various
    individuals      involved    in     the   investigation.            This     included
    Officer   Cosgrove,    who    inventoried        a    newspaper     that     had   the
    letters "S A R" written on it in blood and a pornographic DVD
    7
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    that    was    removed         from    the   DVD     machine     at     I.N.'s    apartment.
    There    was     also      a    photograph         of   a    file     cabinet     in    I.N.'s
    apartment, which also had the letters "S-a-r" written on it in
    blood.
    ¶21     Detective         Stojsavljevic          testified       about     recovering
    evidence from Sarfraz's taxicab, including a bloody knife that
    was hidden under the front seat.                        The knife was processed and
    analyzed by a forensic scientist from the State Crime Lab who
    testified that it contained DNA from both Sarfraz and I.N.                                    The
    forensic scientist also analyzed buccal, vaginal, and cervical
    swabs from I.N. as well as swabs from Sarfraz.                             She identified
    semen on the swabs from I.N.'s cervix and vagina that matched
    Sarfraz's DNA.
    ¶22     The jury also heard testimony from the sexual assault
    nurse who relayed the results of I.N.'s medical exam.                                 I.N. had
    tenderness at the front of her throat that was "secondary to
    strangulation," a cut on her finger, and a cut on her ankle.
    I.N. also had injuries to her vaginal areas consistent with
    blunt force contact.
    ¶23     In addition, the jury was shown photographs taken of
    I.N.    on    May    15,       2010.     They       revealed     a     three-to-four      inch
    scratch on her cheek, injuries to her neck, an injury between
    her breasts, an injured finger, bruises on her elbow, and an
    injury to her ankle.
    ¶24     Sarfraz presented a very different version of events
    at   trial.         As   background,         Sarfraz        repeated    much     of    what   he
    stated at the evidentiary hearing.                          He testified that he and
    8
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    I.N. had a romantic relationship.          They had previously engaged
    in teasing, touching, hugging, and kissing each other.                       The
    hugging and kissing was frequent and intense and had occurred
    when his children were sleeping or away and his wife was out of
    the house.     He testified that he had even brought up marriage
    with I.N., and that I.N. moved out after his wife caught them
    together.
    ¶25     Sarfraz testified that he was not wearing a mask when
    he went to I.N.'s apartment.       He knocked on her door, I.N. asked
    who it was, and he responded "me."        Then I.N. opened the door.
    ¶26     After entering, Sarfraz hugged I.N.            He went to the
    refrigerator, got a few things, and then sat down and started
    watching television.       I.N. talked to him about her need for
    money and insisted he leave his wife and children.                When he told
    her that he would not leave his wife and children, things "got
    heated."     I.N. was furious.     She grabbed his collar, cried and
    yelled, and hit him with her fist.             He tried to leave, but she
    kept pulling him inside.
    ¶27     Sarfraz   testified   that    he    suddenly   had    to   use   the
    bathroom.     While he was sitting in the bathroom, I.N. entered
    and stabbed his face with a knife.         A struggle ensued and he put
    his hands on her throat to push her away.              He took the knife
    from I.N. and put it in his pocket.              Then they went into the
    living room.     Sarfraz lay down due to pain caused by either
    kidney stones or gall stones.           Throughout this time, Sarfraz's
    pants remained down.
    9
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    ¶28    Sarfraz       then    asked     I.N.      if   she   knew    what     kind    of
    trouble      she    could    get    into     if    he    called    the    police.         I.N.
    apologized.         After Sarfraz recovered from the pain, I.N. started
    "love talk" and sat on top of him.                      She fondled him and told him
    she wanted to have intercourse.                    She rubbed herself against him
    and asked him to forgive her.                 She then started the pornographic
    DVD and rubbed his penis with her hand.
    ¶29    Sarfraz stated that I.N. tried to "make love," but he
    pushed her away and said no.                     She continued rubbing his penis
    and asked him to ejaculate on her, which he did.                                When Sarfraz
    got up, he began cleaning up the blood and then left.
    ¶30    To    support       his   defense,        Sarfraz    also    presented       the
    testimony of his wife and Uddin.                     Uddin repeated his statements
    from    the   evidentiary          hearing,       telling    the    jury    that     he    had
    observed I.N. sitting on Sarfraz's lap with his arms around her
    waist.       He also told the jury about the time he saw I.N. hug
    Sarfraz while Sarfraz was cooking.
    ¶31    Likewise, Sarfraz's wife repeated much of what she had
    stated at the evidentiary hearing.                       She told the jury that on
    one    occasion      she    saw    I.N.    and     Sarfraz    putting      food     in    each
    others' mouths.           She also told the jury that she saw Sarfraz and
    I.N. in the bedroom together, that this made her upset, and
    afterwards she threw I.N.'s belongings out of the apartment.
    Consistent         with    the     court's    instruction,         his     wife     did    not
    elaborate on what exactly she saw.
    ¶32    The jury returned a guilty verdict and Sarfraz was
    sentenced to ten years' incarceration and five years' extended
    10
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    supervision.           Thereafter,          Sarfraz    moved        for    post-conviction
    relief,       alleging           ineffective       assistance         of     counsel          and
    entitlement to a new sentence.                     The circuit court denied the
    motion.       Sarfraz appealed, arguing that the circuit court erred
    in rejecting his ineffective assistance of counsel claim, and
    that the circuit court incorrectly interpreted the rape shield
    law    and    violated       his    constitutional          rights    by     excluding        the
    evidence of past sexual conduct between himself and I.N.
    ¶33     The    court       of   appeals     reversed        the     conviction         and
    remanded the case for a new trial.                      State v. Sarfraz, 2013 WI
    App    57,    ¶1,    
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    ,       
    832 N.W.2d 346
    .            The      court    of
    appeals disagreed with the circuit court's conclusion that the
    evidence of past sexual conduct was not relevant to a material
    fact in the case, and it stated that the law did not require the
    prior sexual conduct to be the same as that alleged in the
    criminal case.          
    Id., ¶26. It
    determined that the past sexual
    conduct was material to the issue of consent, and the probative
    nature of the past sexual contact outweighed any prejudice to
    I.N.         
    Id., ¶¶24, 30.
        Accordingly,         the    court       of    appeals
    concluded       that       the     circuit     court       erred     by     excluding         the
    evidence.           
    Id., ¶31. The
    court of appeals did not address
    Sarfraz's arguments about ineffective assistance of counsel and
    entitlement to a new sentence.
    ¶34     The dissent did not agree that the excluded evidence
    was material.         
    Id., ¶34 (Brennan,
        J.,    dissenting).              It   noted
    that testimony regarding the prior consensual masturbation was
    the    only    excluded          evidence    and     that    other        evidence     of     the
    11
    No.       2012AP337-CR
    romantic relationship was admitted at trial.                                   
    Id. The dissent
    also    asserted      that      Sarfraz         had     not    explained            how     the   prior
    consensual masturbation would give I.N. a motive to lie about
    the    incident      on   May    15.            
    Id., ¶36. Moreover,
             the    omitted
    evidence      had    little      probative         value,       as       it    did     not    support
    Sarfraz's      theory      of    defense          and    was       too     dissimilar         to    the
    conduct charged.          
    Id., ¶39. II.
       STANDARD OF REVIEW
    ¶35     This issue in this case is whether the circuit court
    properly excluded evidence of prior consensual sexual conduct
    between Sarfraz and I.N.                   The exclusion of evidence is subject
    to    the    circuit      court's          discretion.             State       v.     Jackson,      
    216 Wis. 2d 646
    , 655, 
    575 N.W.2d 475
    (1998).                                 We will not find an
    erroneous       exercise        of    discretion             unless       the       circuit        court
    "applied       the   wrong      legal        standard         in     the       exercise       of    its
    discretion      or . . . the          facts       of     record       fail      to     support      the
    circuit court's decision."                      State v. Ringer, 
    2010 WI 69
    , ¶24,
    
    326 Wis. 2d 351
    , 
    785 N.W.2d 448
    .
    III. DISCUSSION
    ¶36     Sarfraz     argues          that    the        circuit         court       erroneously
    exercised      its    discretion           by    excluding         evidence          of     his   prior
    sexual relationship with I.N. to support his version of events
    and I.N.'s motive to fabricate the charges.                                    Sarfraz contends
    that     the     circuit         court's           error        deprived             him     of     his
    constitutional         rights        to     present      a     defense         and     to    confront
    adverse witnesses.
    12
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    ¶37       Defendants are granted the constitutional rights to
    present   a    defense     and   confront   adverse    witnesses      under    the
    confrontation       and   compulsory   process      clauses   of     Article    I,
    Section 7 of the Wisconsin Constitution3 and the Sixth Amendment
    of the United States Constitution.4              State v. Pulizzano, 
    155 Wis. 2d 633
    , 645, 
    456 N.W.2d 325
    (1990).                These rights, which
    have aptly been described as opposite sides of the same coin,
    are "fundamental and essential to achieving the constitutional
    objective      of   a     fair   trial."      
    Id. (citing Chambers
       v.
    Mississippi, 
    410 U.S. 284
    , 294 (1973)).               Even so, these rights
    3
    Article I, Section 7 of the Wisconsin Constitution states:
    In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy
    the right to be heard by himself and counsel; to
    demand the nature and cause of the accusation against
    him; to meet the witnesses face to face; to have
    compulsory process to compel the attendance of
    witnesses in his behalf; and in prosecutions by
    indictment, or information, to a speedy public trial
    by an impartial jury of the county or district wherein
    the offense shall have been committed; which county or
    district shall have been previously ascertained by
    law.
    4
    The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution
    states:
    In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy
    the right to a speedy and public trial, by an
    impartial jury of the State and district wherein the
    crime shall have been committed, which district shall
    have been previously ascertained by law, and to be
    informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to
    be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have
    compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his
    favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his
    defense.
    13
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    are not absolute.               "Confrontation and compulsory process only
    grant defendants the constitutional right to present relevant
    evidence         that     is     'not     substantially        outweighed      by   its
    prejudicial        effects.'"           
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 657
      (quoting
    
    Pulizzano, 155 Wis. 2d at 646
    ).
    ¶38 Here, Sarfraz's proffer of past sexual contact with
    I.N.        implicates    Wis.    Stat.    § 972.11,       Wisconsin's    rape   shield
    law.5         Under     the    rape   shield      law,    introducing    any   evidence
    concerning the complainant's prior sexual history or reputation
    is generally barred "regardless of the purpose."                           Wis. Stat.
    § 972.11(2)(c); 
    Pulizzano, 155 Wis. 2d at 644
    .                     "The rape shield
    law expresses the legislature's determination that evidence of a
    complainant's prior sexual conduct has low probative value and a
    highly prejudicial effect."                  
    DeSantis, 155 Wis. 2d at 784-85
    .
    However, § 972.11 sets out three statutory exceptions to its
    broad evidentiary shield, which "encompass those limited factual
    scenarios in which the legislature has determined that evidence
    of a complainant's sexual history may be sufficiently probative
    of a material issue to overcome the prejudicial nature of such
    5
    Wisconsin's rape shield law was enacted "'to counteract
    outdated beliefs that a complainant's sexual past could shed
    light on the truthfulness of the sexual assault allegations.'"
    State v. Carter, 
    2010 WI 40
    , ¶39, 
    324 Wis. 2d 640
    , 
    782 N.W.2d 695
    (quoting State v. Dunlap, 
    2002 WI 19
    , ¶19, 
    250 Wis. 2d 466
    , 
    640 N.W.2d 112
    ).      The law is rooted in the
    legislature's determination that evidence of a complainant's
    prior sexual conduct is largely irrelevant "or, if relevant,
    substantially outweighed by its prejudicial effect."    State v.
    Pulizzano, 
    155 Wis. 2d 633
    , 644, 
    456 N.W.2d 325
    (1990); see also
    Carter, 
    324 Wis. 2d 640
    , ¶39; State v. DeSantis, 
    155 Wis. 2d 774
    ,
    784-85, 
    456 N.W.2d 600
    (1990).
    14
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    evidence."      
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 657
    -58; see § 972.11(2)(b)1-
    3.
    ¶39   Sarfraz      sought   to     admit    evidence      under     the   first
    exception,       Wis.     Stat.        § 972.11(2)(b)1,         which       concerns
    "[e]vidence of the complaining witness's past conduct with the
    defendant."      As this court observed in Jackson, "merely offering
    proof of the general type described in a particular exception is
    not enough to defeat the rape shield statute."                          
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 658
    .       The statutory exceptions to the rape shield law
    are also subject to Wis. Stat. § 971.31(11), which provides that
    the   circuit    court    must    first       determine    that    the     proffered
    evidence is "material to a fact at issue in the case and of
    sufficient    probative     value      to   outweigh      its   inflammatory      and
    prejudicial nature before it may be introduced at trial."6                        See
    Wis. Stat. § 972.11(2)(b).
    ¶40   Thus,       under     Wis.        Stat.    §§ 972.11(2)(b)1           and
    971.31(11), evidence of the complainant's alleged past sexual
    conduct with the defendant is admissible only if the defendant
    makes a three-part showing that: "(i) the proffered evidence
    6
    Wisconsin Stat. § 971.31(11) operates as an "inverted
    balancing test," in that it reverses the approach of Wis. Stat.
    § 904.03 for weighing the admissibility of evidence.    7 Daniel
    D. Blinka,    Wisconsin Practice   Series:   Wisconsin  Evidence
    § 420.4, at 284 (3d ed. 2008).      Unlike Wis. Stat. § 904.03,
    which requires that evidence be admitted unless the probative
    value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair
    prejudice, the balancing test in § 971.31(11) is "biased against
    admissibility." 
    Id. In other
    words, the starting assumption is
    that the proffered evidence, absent a showing to the contrary,
    is more prejudicial than probative.          Id.; 
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 658
    .
    15
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    relates to sexual activities between the complainant and the
    defendant; (ii) the evidence is material to a fact at issue; and
    (iii) the evidence of sexual contact with the complainant is of
    'sufficient        probative          value       to    outweigh       its    inflammatory         and
    prejudicial nature.'"                   
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 658
    -59 (citing
    
    DeSantis, 155 Wis. 2d at 785
    ).
    ¶41    Under       the    first       step       of     the    analysis,         the   circuit
    court must be able to conclude from the defendant's proffer that
    a reasonable person could find it "more likely than not" that
    the prior sexual conduct occurred.                            See Ringer, 
    326 Wis. 2d 351
    ,
    ¶32;   
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 659
    .        Here,       the     circuit     court
    determined that a reasonable jury could find it more likely than
    not that prior sexual conduct had occurred between Sarfraz and
    I.N.      We agree with the circuit court that a reasonable person
    could find from the testimony of Sarfraz, Riffat, and Uddin that
    it   is    more     likely           than   not        that    prior       sexual       conduct    had
    occurred between Sarfraz and I.N.                            Because the evidence related
    to I.N.'s prior sexual conduct with Sarfraz, the first prong of
    DeSantis is satisfied.
    ¶42    The    second          step    of    the        DeSantis      test     requires      the
    circuit      court       to    consider          whether       the    proffered         evidence    is
    material      to     a        fact     at    issue       in     the     case.           Under     this
    "materiality"        prong,           the    court       must        determine      "whether       the
    evidence      is      probative             of     a     fact        (or     proposition)          'of
    consequence' to the determination of the action."                                       7 Daniel D.
    Blinka, Wisconsin Practice Series: Wisconsin Evidence § 401.101,
    16
    No.   2012AP337-CR
    at 98 (3d ed. 2008).7    Put differently, the test under Wis. Stat.
    § 904.01——which   sets   forth   the   definition   of     relevancy    in
    Wisconsin evidence law——is "simply whether the evidence has any
    tendency to make a consequential fact more or less probable."8
    Blinka, § 401.102 at 101 (emphasis added). Evidence should be
    excluded as "irrelevant" only if it completely lacks probative
    value.   
    Id. at 102.
    ¶43   The substantive law governs the particular elements of
    the crime charged and the facts or propositions that are of
    consequence to the case.     State v. Sullivan, 
    216 Wis. 2d 768
    ,
    785-86, 
    576 N.W.2d 30
    (1998).9     Therefore, the proponent of the
    evidence must articulate the fact or proposition the evidence is
    7
    The common law term "materiality" has been replaced in our
    jurisprudence with the concept of consequential facts (or
    propositions).   State v. Sullivan, 
    216 Wis. 2d 768
    , 786 n.15,
    
    576 N.W.2d 30
    (1998) (citing 
    Blinka, supra
    , § 401.101, at 64
    (1991)).
    8
    "[E]vidence is relevant if it has the slightest bit of
    probative worth; only evidence that has no value as proof of a
    consequential fact is irrelevant."      22 Wright and Graham,
    Federal Practice and Procedure: Evidence § 5165 (1978 ed.).
    "Any tiny increase or decrease in the probability of a fact of
    consequence   'does  the   trick,'  no   matter  how   slightly
    incremental." Paul Rothstein, Federal Rules of Evidence r. 401
    (3d ed. 1985).
    9
    Further,   "the    terms   'fact   of    consequence'   or
    'consequential fact' refer not only to the ultimate facts but to
    all links in the factual chain necessary to establish the
    ultimate facts."   
    Blinka, supra
    , § 401.101, at 98.    This means
    that the proffered evidence does not need to bear directly on a
    particular element of the crime charged.     Holmes v. State, 
    76 Wis. 2d 259
    , 268, 
    251 N.W.2d 56
    (1977).    Instead, the evidence
    may simply "bear upon any one of countless other factors which
    are of consequence to the determination of the action." 
    Id. 17 No.
       2012AP337-CR
    offered to prove.    
    Id. at 786.
         This offer of proof does not
    need to "'be stated with complete precision or in unnecessary
    detail but it should state an evidentiary hypothesis underpinned
    by a sufficient statement of facts to warrant the conclusion or
    inference that the trier of fact is urged to adopt.'"         
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 662
    (quoting Milenkovic v. State, 
    86 Wis. 2d 272
    ,
    284, 
    272 N.W.2d 320
    (Ct. App. 1978)).
    ¶44   Here,   defense   counsel   argued   at   the    evidentiary
    hearing that the evidence of prior sexual contact was relevant
    to Sarfraz's defense to the charge of sexual assault:
    The whole nature of that relationship existed is
    material to the idea that he would in some way need to
    come to that apartment with a mask and a knife to try
    to get sex from her, which——is what the nature of
    these allegations are.
    And it also goes, I think, a——to whether there was
    consensual sex along the lines that Mr. Sarfraz would
    testify to, that after she attacked him, she——she
    enticed him into a——sexual activity along the lines of
    what he's described in his testimony today, in order
    to placate him.
    That type of consent, I think, is relevant to this
    type of scenario. It may not be in the traditional
    type of situation, but I think it is relevant here. It
    explains the sex.
    It also, I think, a——is central to attacking the idea
    a—that there was forcible entry with a mask and knife.
    All of these things are central to the defense. I
    think we need to be able to put that into evidence in
    order to present a defense for a——Mr. Sarfraz.
    The circuit court was unconvinced by defense counsel's argument
    and found that, because the prior sexual contact between Sarfraz
    18
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    and I.N. did not involve violent, non-consensual intercourse, it
    was not material for purposes of Wis. Stat. § 971.31(11).
    ¶45    We agree with the court of appeals that the circuit
    court misapplied the second prong of the DeSantis test to the
    facts of this case and improperly found the proffered evidence
    was immaterial.           The circuit court's reasoning suggests that, in
    order for evidence of past sexual conduct between Sarfraz and
    I.N. to be admissible, it must be of a similar type and nature
    to that charged against the defendant.
    ¶46    This   narrow       interpretation       of    the    second     DeSantis
    prong    is     unsupported            by   the     language        of     Wis.      Stat.
    § 972.11(2)(b) and our case law.                  The exceptions to Wisconsin's
    rape shield law do not require proffered evidence of past sexual
    conduct between the accuser and the defendant to be the same as
    the criminal conduct alleged against the defendant.                               If they
    did, the only evidence that could be admitted under one of the
    exceptions to the rape shield law for "past conduct with the
    defendant" would be other instances of forcible sex.                         Wis. Stat.
    § 972.11(2)(b)1.           In fact, to the extent that the rape shield
    law exceptions are designed, at least in part, to guarantee a
    meaningful defense to the accused, the circuit court's reading
    completely defeats such a purpose.
    ¶47    Nothing      in    the   rape   shield       law   indicates     that     it
    should be so narrowly construed.                  On the contrary, the exception
    for past sexual conduct in subsection (b)1 has traditionally
    been    applied      to    all    types     of     sexual    contact       between     the
    complainant     and       the    defendant.         See,    e.g.,    
    Blinka, supra
    ,
    19
    No.   2012AP337-CR
    § 420.4, at 284-85 (the first exception in the rape shield law
    "includes all aspects of the relationship that fall within the
    broad definition of 'sexual conduct,' . . . . The most common
    scenario     involves     the    defense's      proffer     of   prior   consensual
    sexual contact in order to prove that the victim also consented
    to the charged conduct.").
    ¶48    The     proper     inquiry    under   the    second    prong    of    the
    DeSantis     test    is   to    consider    whether      the   proffered    evidence
    "relates to a fact or proposition that is of consequence to the
    determination of the action."                
    Sullivan, 216 Wis. 2d at 772
    .
    Here,   I.N.        alleges     that   Sarfraz      sexually       assaulted      her.
    Sarfraz's defense is that the sexual contact was consensual.                        At
    the evidentiary hearing, Sarfraz's counsel articulated that the
    evidence of mutual masturbation was offered to: (1) undercut
    I.N.'s testimony that Sarfraz gained entry to her apartment by
    pretending to be her landlord,                  thereby casting doubt on her
    credibility; (2) support Sarfraz's version of events that I.N.
    was angry with him for refusing to leave his wife for her; and
    (3) bolster Sarfraz's claim that the alleged sexual assault was
    consensual and merely represented a progression in their sexual
    relationship.        See 
    Blinka, supra
    , § 420.4, at 285 ("Most often,
    evidence of prior consensual contact is used to show that the
    victim consented at the time of the assault . . . .")                          It is
    clear Sarfraz's counsel established that the proffered evidence
    related to facts consequential to the determination of the case.
    As the court of appeals correctly explained, the fact that "I.N.
    may   have   masturbated        Sarfraz    on    numerous      occasions,   both    at
    20
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    Sarfraz's apartment and at her own, is relevant to the issue of
    whether      I.N.    consented      to     sexual      contact       on    May       15,   2010."
    Sarfraz, 
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    , ¶27.                     Further, "[t]he full scope of
    their     sexual      relationship          is    relevant          to     whether         it    is
    believable that Sarfraz attempted to conceal his identity from
    someone who knew him so well in a physical sense."                               
    Id. ¶49 Moreover,
         Sarfraz        and       I.N.'s    respective              testimony
    offered wildly divergent accounts of their relationship and what
    transpired      on    the    day    of     the    alleged      sexual          assault.         The
    proffered evidence of past sexual conduct weighs directly on
    their     respective        credibility,         as    well     as        on     Riffat's       and
    Uddin's, both of whom testified that they witnessed Sarfraz and
    I.N. together in intimate situations.                       Without exception, "[a]
    witness's      credibility         is    always        'consequential'               within     the
    meaning of Wis. Stat. § 904.01."                      
    Blinka, supra
    , § 401.101, at
    98 (emphasis added).
    ¶50    The    State     argues        that       concluding             the      proffered
    evidence      is    material       would    undermine,         if    not        overrule,       our
    holding in State v. Jackson, 
    216 Wis. 2d 646
    .                             We disagree.           In
    Jackson, the defendant initially sought admission of evidence of
    prior   sexual       conduct    with       the    complainant         to       show     that    the
    alleged sexual assault was consensual.                      
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 660
    .    On the first day of trial, however, Jackson changed his
    theory of defense and argued that he never had sexual contact
    with the complainant.               
    Id. at 652.
              Despite this last-minute
    change to his theory of defense, Jackson's counsel argued the
    evidence of past sexual conduct was still material because it
    21
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    would touch on the complainant's anger and explain "why human
    beings in this situation might have disagreement concerning what
    happened because of that prior relationship."                                        
    Id. at 661-62.
    The circuit court ruled that the evidence of prior consensual
    sexual    contact          between          Jackson       and      the    complainant         was     not
    material.          
    Id. at 660.
                  On appeal, we held that the vague
    proffer      by    Jackson's           counsel          of      "his     undeveloped         anger     or
    jealousy theory," even if accepted as true, did not "lead to an
    inference that false accusations were leveled in revenge for the
    termination of that relationship."                              
    Id. at 662.
             Here, in stark
    contrast      to      Jackson,             defense        counsel's       proffer          provided     a
    detailed     factual           basis        to    the     circuit        court       describing       the
    alleged prior sexual relationship, which included corroboration
    from other witnesses.
    ¶51    Thus, we conclude the circuit court erred in finding
    that the proffered evidence of prior sexual conduct was not
    "material     to      a    fact       at        issue    in     the    case."         
    DeSantis, 155 Wis. 2d at 785
    .                Sarfraz proffered sufficient facts to support
    his defense of consent against the allegation of sexual assault
    and satisfied the materiality requirement of the second DeSantis
    prong.
    ¶52    This brings us to the third step in the analysis,
    which    asks      whether           the    evidence          of   sexual      contact       with     the
    complainant        has         sufficient          probative           value    to     outweigh       its
    inflammatory and prejudicial nature.                               
    Id. As noted
    above, this
    step    operates          as    an    inverted          balancing        test    that       "initially
    weight[s]       the       balance          in    favor     of      a   determination         that     the
    22
    No.     2012AP337-CR
    evidence is inherently prejudicial" due to "the legislature's
    distrust    of     evidence        of       a    victim's        prior       sexual        history."
    Jackson at 663.             Put differently, the starting assumption is
    that the evidence is prejudicial.                         
    Id. at 658.
                Satisfying this
    burden is far more demanding than the showing required under the
    second step of DeSantis.                Unlike the second step, which looks to
    whether the evidence of prior sexual conduct is material (that
    is, whether the evidence has any probative value), the third
    prong    asks    whether        the     probative          value       of   that        evidence     is
    sufficient       to        outweigh          its        inherently          inflammatory             and
    prejudicial        nature.            
    Id. at 659.
             "Evidence         is     unduly
    prejudicial when it threatens the fundamental goals of accuracy
    and     fairness      of    the       trial        by     misleading         the        jury    or   by
    influencing the jury to decide the case upon an improper basis."
    
    DeSantis, 155 Wis. 2d at 791-92
    .
    ¶53   Here, the circuit court determined that Sarfraz failed
    to meet his burden under the third DeSantis prong, and we agree.
    We explained in DeSantis that when the proffered evidence of
    prior    sexual       conduct      and       the     sexual          conduct      underlying         the
    criminal    charges        at   issue        are        "significantly         different,"           the
    probative    value         of   the     proffered          evidence         "on    the     issue      of
    consent [is] minimal," and "[t]he fact that the prior incident
    was   remote     in    time       and       dissimilar          in    circumstances            further
    diminishes the value of comparing the two incidents and drawing
    conclusions        regarding          the       complainant's           credibility            or    her
    consent."       
    Id. at 791.
                 Indeed, mutual masturbation——which is
    the evidence Sarfraz argues was improperly excluded from trial——
    23
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    is   profoundly      dissimilar          in    circumstance          from     non-consensual
    vaginal intercourse following a knife fight.
    ¶54    Sarfraz's theory of defense was that the intercourse
    was consensual, and he maintains that the past sexual conduct
    supports     this     argument.               However,     his       proffered       testimony
    regarding     the    past        sexual    conduct       provides          little    probative
    value to support this proposition.                         The past conduct Sarfraz
    alleged     did   not      go    beyond       consensual       masturbation.           Sarfraz
    explained that he and I.N. had not had intercourse in the past
    because in their culture one did not have intercourse outside of
    marriage.     That they refrained from intercourse in the past, far
    from suggesting consent, strongly suggests that I.N. would not
    have consented to sexual intercourse on May 15, 2010.
    ¶55    The strong presumption that this type of evidence is
    prejudicial       lends     additional         support      to       the    circuit    court's
    decision to exclude the evidence.                    The legislature enacted the
    rape shield statute in part to protect complainants from the
    embarrassment        and    humiliation          that     discouraged          victims     from
    reporting     crimes        of    sexual       assault.          In        determining     that
    evidence     of     prior       sexual    conduct        has     a    highly       prejudicial
    effect,     the   legislature        crafted        into    the       rape    shield     law    a
    "balancing test that [assumes], absent an evidentiary showing to
    the contrary, [that] the proferred evidence is more prejudicial
    than probative."            
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 658
    .                           The circuit
    court   concluded       that       Sarfraz      failed      to       meet    his    burden     of
    showing that the probative value of the evidence outweighed its
    prejudicial nature, and we agree.                    Because of the low probative
    24
    No.    2012AP337-CR
    value of the excluded evidence, and its highly inflammatory and
    prejudicial nature, we conclude the circuit court's decision to
    exclude   the    evidence    was      not      an     erroneous        exercise   of
    discretion.
    IV.      CONCLUSION
    ¶56    We hold that the circuit court's refusal to admit the
    proffered evidence of the prior sexual relationship was proper
    under Wisconsin's rape shield law, Wis. Stat. § 972.11.                        While
    we conclude the circuit court improperly applied the materiality
    prong of the DeSantis test, we nevertheless hold the circuit
    court correctly excluded the evidence because Sarfraz failed to
    establish, under the third DeSantis prong, that the probative
    value of the evidence outweighed its inherent prejudice.
    ¶57    Accordingly, we reverse and remand to the court of
    appeals   for   consideration      of    the      ineffective      assistance     of
    counsel   and   sentencing   arguments         raised     by   Sarfraz     but    not
    previously addressed.
    By    the   Court.—The   decision        of     the   court   of    appeals   is
    reversed, and the cause remanded to the court of appeals.
    ¶58    DAVID T. PROSSER, J., did not participate.
    25
    No.    2012AP337-CR.akz
    ¶59    ANNETTE        KINGSLAND          ZIEGLER,      J.        (concurring).            I
    concur    with      the    majority       opinion     that    the       court     of    appeals
    should      be     reversed.         I    do    not    agree,       however,         with     the
    majority's conclusions regarding the materiality of the evidence
    in the case at issue.                I write separately primarily because I
    conclude that the evidence at issue was not material, but also
    because I agree with the well-stated reasoning of the dissent in
    the court of appeals.                See State v. Sarfraz, 
    2013 WI App 57
    ,
    ¶¶32-40,         
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    ,          
    832 N.W.2d 346
                 (Brennan,       J.,
    dissenting).             Sarfraz's       materiality      argument          turns    the     rape
    shield law inside out.                Sarfraz basically argues that because
    the   victim       had    previously       engaged     in    consensual          masturbation
    with Sarfraz, she therefore must have consented to the violent,
    vaginal     intercourse        at    knifepoint        with       Sarfaz        on     May    15.1
    Sarfraz further asserts that this evidence is relevant to the
    victim's truthfulness.
    ¶60    Sarfraz's argument undermines the fundamental purpose
    behind    the      rape    shield     law:      protection        of    a     victim    who    is
    improperly attacked regarding prior sexual activity.                                   The rape
    shield law is intended to exclude evidence of prior consensual,
    nonviolent sexual activity especially when, as is the case at
    issue,      such       evidence     is    dissimilar        from       the     violent       rape
    1
    The victim steadfastly denies that she ever engaged in any
    sexual activity with Sarfraz because for cultural reasons, she
    would not have engaged in such activity.      The victim further
    denies that she ever had any kind of romantic relationship with
    Sarfraz.
    1
    No.    2012AP337-CR.akz
    charged.    Sarfraz's argument goes too far and could be viewed as
    unraveling the protections that the rape shield law affords a
    victim of sexual assault.                In a sexual assault trial it is not
    the victim's past that is on trial.                     Surely the majority cannot
    be concluding that a defendant need only allege that a previous
    consensual sexual encounter occurred with the victim in order to
    render admissible such otherwise prohibited evidence.                                I write
    to confirm that the rape shield law remains intact even after
    the   majority's         fact-specific      determinations           in    the       case   at
    issue.
    ¶61   In my view, Sarfraz's argument and hence, the majority
    opinion, is flawed in three fundamental respects: (1) the trial
    court    made   a       discretionary     evidentiary         determination          that    is
    owed deference; (2) the subject evidence is not material and;
    (3) the probative value of the evidence does not outweigh its
    prejudicial effect.
    ¶62   First,        we    review    the   circuit       court's      discretionary
    decision regarding the admission of evidence.                        "'This court will
    not   disturb       a    circuit    court's     decision       to   admit       or    exclude
    evidence    unless        the   circuit     court    erroneously           exercised        its
    discretion.'"             State     v.    Jackson,       
    2014 WI 4
    ,     ¶43,       
    352 Wis. 2d 249
    , 
    841 N.W.2d 791
    (quoting Weborg v. Jenny, 
    2012 WI 67
    , ¶41, 
    341 Wis. 2d 668
    , 
    816 N.W.2d 191
    ).         A circuit court
    erroneously exercises its discretion only "'if it applies an
    improper    legal        standard    or    makes    a    decision         not   reasonably
    supported by the facts of record.'"                     
    Id. I conclude
    that the
    trial court did not err in either its factual determinations or
    2
    No.    2012AP337-CR.akz
    the   legal    standard      applied.             I    agree       with     Judge      Brennan's
    dissent in the court of appeals that "the trial court applied
    facts   from    the       record   to    the          correct       legal       standard     from
    DeSantis."           Sarfraz,      
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    ,             ¶33        (Brennan,     J.,
    dissenting)     (citing      State      v.    DeSantis,             
    155 Wis. 2d 774
    ,       
    456 N.W.2d 600
    (1990)).
    ¶63     Second, the evidence that Sarfraz sought to admit was
    not material.         See 
    id., ¶34. While
    the trial court excluded
    Sarfraz's request to introduce testimony that he and the victim
    previously      engaged       in     consensual              masturbation,             the   jury
    nonetheless heard testimony that he and the victim had a prior
    romantic     relationship.          Whether           acts     of    mutual       masturbation
    occurred or not is of little consequence to the crime charged.
    If the issue is whether the consensual masturbation evidence was
    material,     Sarfraz's       argument        that       the    evidence          is    material
    because it goes to truthfulness, misses the mark.                                      Sarfraz's
    argument      that    the     sexual         contact         was      consensual         before,
    therefore it must be consensual in the case at issue, likewise
    fails to explain why the complainant would now fabricate a story
    about   an      armed       and    masked         entry        and        forceful       vaginal
    intercourse.          I    agree     with         Judge      Brennan's           dissent     that
    Sarfraz's arguments are "'vague arguments and bald assertions'
    without any link to the complainant's motive for lying about
    sexual assault on trial."               
    Id., ¶36 (quoting
    State v. Jackson,
    
    216 Wis. 2d 646
    , 662, 
    575 N.W.2d 475
    (1998)).
    ¶64     To the extent that Sarfraz did offer a theory as to
    the complainant's motive for lying about the forceful rape at
    3
    No.   2012AP337-CR.akz
    trial, that theory was not supported by the evidence that he
    sought      to   admit.   As   Judge    Brennan's    dissent       aptly    notes,
    however, "that defense theory did not require proof that they
    engaged in consensual masturbation previously."                    Sarfraz, 
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    , ¶37 (Brennan, J., dissenting).                 If the existence of
    a   romantic     relationship    was    what    Sarfraz     thought    to    be   so
    significant to his defense, that evidence was already before the
    jury.    As Judge Brennan's dissent pointed out, the trial court
    did     admit     other    evidence      of     Sarfraz's     prior        romantic
    relationship with the victim through the testimony of Sarfraz,
    his wife, and a friend.           
    Id. In addition,
    Sarfraz testified
    that the complainant wanted him to marry her, but that he did
    not want to marry her.          
    Id. It is
    less than clear why evidence
    of consensual masturbation would explain why she was angry that
    he would not marry her.               If evidence of a relationship was
    somehow relevant to his defense, the masturbation evidence was
    not required to so establish the fact that they had such a
    relationship.      Moreover, evidence of a romantic relationship was
    already before the jury.              At most, the excluded evidence was
    cumulative to the evidence already before the jury.
    ¶65    Finally, as Judge Brennan's dissent stated, "the trial
    court properly weighed the prejudicial effect of the excluded
    testimony against its probative value."              
    Id., ¶38. The
    purpose
    of the rape shield law is to "protect complainants from the
    humiliation        and    degradation         associated      with      unfounded
    allegations regarding sexual history."               
    Id. (quoting DeSantis,
    155 Wis. 2d at 793).           Thus, testimony relating to past sexual
    4
    No.    2012AP337-CR.akz
    conduct    is    admissible    only          if    it   is    both    material      and    the
    probative value outweighs the prejudicial effect, and since the
    evidence is not material, its probative value does not outweigh
    the prejudicial effect.             I agree with Judge Brennan's dissent
    that even if one were to conclude that the evidence was of some
    marginal materiality, the circuit court was correct to conclude
    that the prejudicial effect outweighed its probative value.                                Not
    only does the evidence fail to support the defense theory of the
    complainant's      motive     to    lie,          it    is   cumulative       to    evidence
    introduced at trial and the conduct is "too dissimilar" to the
    conduct in the charged offense to be probative.                                As noted in
    DeSantis, the prior sexual conduct must not be remote in time or
    dissimilar in 
    circumstance. 155 Wis. 2d at 790-91
    .                Here, as
    Judge Brennan stated:
    [T]he   alleged   prior  consensual   masturbation is
    completely dissimilar to the masked, armed, home
    intrusion and forcible sexual assault at trial. It is
    too dissimilar to pass the DeSantis admissibility
    test. The prejudice to the complainant from including
    the alleged masturbation evidence, especially when
    there was such a limited probative value to the
    defense theory, is exactly what the rape shield law
    was designed to eliminate.
    Sarfraz,    
    348 Wis. 2d 57
    ,       ¶39          (Brennan,     J.,     dissenting).        I
    agree.
    ¶66     Both    Jackson        and       DeSantis        instruct       that   the    rape
    shield    law    presumes    both        "low      probative        value    and   a   highly
    prejudicial       effect"    when        a      defendant       wishes       to    introduce
    evidence    of    prior     consensual            sex   in    the    past     in   order    to
    establish consensual sex with respect to the offense charged.
    
    DeSantis, 155 Wis. 2d at 784-85
    ; 
    Jackson, 216 Wis. 2d at 658
    ;
    5
    No.    2012AP337-CR.akz
    see   also    State      v.    Pulizzano,       
    155 Wis. 2d 633
    ,         643-44,     
    456 N.W.2d 325
    (1990).2           Sarfraz likewise failed to demonstrate that
    his confrontation right or his right to present a defense were
    violated.      See Nevada v. Jackson, 569 U.S. ___, 
    133 S. Ct. 1990
    (2013);     State   v.     Dunlap,    
    2002 WI 19
    ,    
    250 Wis. 2d 466
    ,    
    640 N.W.2d 112
    .
    ¶67    If     anything,        evidence         of     a     previous       loving,
    consensual,       romantic      relationship         would       more    likely   predict
    future similar conduct rather than the violent, forceful, bloody
    events of May 15.             Simply stated, Sarfraz did not show how the
    prior,      nonviolent,        consensual       relationship        would     predict     a
    future violent episode or impact on the victim's truthfulness.
    In short, the dissimilarity of the prior acts is at odds with
    the   materiality     or      probative     value     and     admissibility       of    the
    subject     evidence.         The   circuit      court      properly       exercised    its
    discretion in excluding the subject evidence.
    ¶68    For the foregoing reasons, I concur.
    ¶69    I am authorized to state that Justice PATIENCE DRAKE
    ROGGENSACK joins this concurrence.
    2
    State v. Pulizzano addresses a different exception under
    the rape shield law.    
    155 Wis. 2d 633
    , 643-44, 
    456 N.W.2d 325
    (1990).    Notably, Sarfraz's offer of proof was insufficient
    under that exception as well.
    6
    No.   2012AP337-CR.akz
    1