The not guilty verdict in the case of three white former Milwaukee police officers accused of brutally beating an unarmed man has exposed a flawed justice system in that Midwestern city.
"The system failed in this case," said NAACP President & CEO Bruce S. Gordon. "There need to be some fundamental changes in the way citizens are treated in Milwaukee when they are involved in the criminal justice system. It's not just a case of renegade police officers, but a breakdown of the system from top to bottom."
NAACP officials, including General Counsel Dennis C. Hayes, outlined specific areas of concern, including the need for timely investigations by the District Attorney when there are charges of police abuse, a system for increasing the diversity of the jury pool and improved police training that instructs officers how to handle cases where officers are accused of breaking the law.
Frank Jude Jr. of Appleton, Wisconsin was attacked outside of an off-duty police party in 2004. Witnesses testified that Jude was kicked repeatedly and punched in the head, face, body and groin. He suffered ear injuries, two broken facial bones, choke marks, cuts and bruises, according to court testimony. Jude, who is biracial, testified that racial slurs were hurled at him during the attack.
The all-white jury deliberated for more than 25 hours before finding three former Milwaukee police officers not guilty on four of five charges. The jury was deadlocked on a fifth charge. Defense lawyers for the accused police officers succeeded in removing all African Americans from the jury pool in the case.
U.S. Attorney Steven Biskupic said his office, in conjunction with the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, will not only investigate the case involving the three acquitted officers, but will look at all aspects of the October 2004 incident to see if federal civil rights and obstruction of justice laws were violated.
After meetings with the NAACP, the Milwaukee District Attorney agreed to immediately investigate future police abuse claims to preserve the evidence in these cases. In this case, Jude was not interviewed by the District Attorney's office for nearly four months, according to Henry Hamilton, a member of the Milwaukee Branch NAACP Executive Committee. District Attorney E. Michael McCann told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that prosecution of the case was also hampered "because we didn't have the cooperation from several police officers."
NAACP officials met yesterday with McCann, Police Chief Nan Hegerty and the Clerk of the Court. Hegerty told the NAACP that her department will create a more efficient way of investigating alleged police brutality cases and increase training on how to respond when police are accused of breaking the law. Hegerty fired nine off-duty officers in connection with the Jude beating, suspended three on-duty officers and demoted another.
To ensure greater diversity in the jury pool, the NAACP recommended that in addition to taking prospective juror names from voting rolls and motor vehicle records, telephone and utility customers should be considered for jury duty.
"We anticipate improved investigations when police officers are involved as a result of today's meeting," said Hayes. He said the NAACP offered its assistance to improve relations with the African American community and the police department.
Hamilton said that in the coming weeks the Milwaukee Branch NAACP would also be meeting with elected officials to affect policy changes in the way the Fire and Police Commission investigates police misconduct. He called for additional resources to enable the Commission to adequately investigate cases of police misconduct.
Jerry Ann Hamilton, president of the Milwaukee Branch NAACP, said, "I am encouraged by the enthusiasm for justice shown by a cross section of people in the Milwaukee community."
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