Research released from the City Attorney's office indicates that aside from a $100 police obstruction ticket, the city of Madison may have a difficult time recovering the estimated $100,000 cost of the Audrey Seiler investigation.
Assistant City Attorney Larry O'Brien said since the city lacks legal authority, there is little possibility under state law Madison could sue Seiler for the costs of her alleged fabricated abduction.
\The research that [the City Attorney's office staff] was able to do on it indicated that there was probably very little civil action that could be brought against the Seilers or Audrey,"" he said.
Depending on the decision of District Attorney Brian Blanchard, O'Brien said the city could fine Seiler on a municipal ordinance violation, which has a maximum of $500.
He added if there is a crime involved, there is a possibility of restitution in a court settlement. However, he said municipalities are not viewed as ""victims"" in restitution cases and therefore cannot receive money.
Madison Police Sgt. Dave McCaw said if Seiler does end up going to court, the judge might decide to fine Seiler to deter people from lying to authorities in the future.
Yet, O'Brien said it is
questionable whether such a deterrent measure could work.
""Capital punishment doesn't seem to stop murders, so whether or not a ... fine would have any serious effects on the deterrence is something that's quite debatable,"" he said.
As of Tuesday, Seiler was still in Madison under medical care, according to The Capital Times. Carolyn Anderson, a colleague of Seiler's attorney, Randy Hopper, told The Capital Times the family is expecting a doctor's report on her condition Wednesday or Thursday.
""Randy is going to Madison today to meet with police and wants to reaffirm the message that the family is cooperating completely with the authorities and they respect the way the authorities handled this,"" she said.
The question of what happens next remains foremost on the minds of students. UW-Madison junior Sofia Gaudioso said it would not bother her if Seiler returned to UW next year, although she cannot imagine Seiler doing so.
""I would be surprised if she did ... when everybody has an opinion about you, been talking about you, that would be difficult,"" Gaudioso said.
-Kate Hedlin contributed to this report.
