Fundraiser for Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah raises $50,000

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) --  A fundraiser for Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah’s legal fees has surpassed it’s goal of $50,000 and keeps climbing.

The Milwaukee Police Association said they alerted their union members.

“Our members need to know what’s going on out there," MPA President Dale Bormann said. "They need to support other officers.”

Mensah’s employment at the Wauwatosa Police Department is currently under review by the city’s Police and Fire Commission. Mensah killed three people in the line of duty in a span of five years. An attorney for the families of two people he killed filed a complaint.

“Nineteen shots fired within a five-year time period," Attorney Kimberly Mostley, who also represents the family of Alvin Cole, said. "Three deaths is an anomaly. And we believe he should be held accountable.”

The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office had already ruled two of Mensah’s deadly shootings, including that of Jay Anderson Jr. in 2016, as self defense. The third, the deadly shooting of Alvin Cole at Mayfair Mall earlier this year, is still under review.

The MPA says Mensah is a victim of the times.

"It’s just unfortunate that they’re going after him, and using him as a scapegoat for something that doesn’t pertain to him," Bormann said. "I don’t think it’s a firing offense.”

Motley said her mission is not to drag the names of all police through the mud, it is specifically about Mensah, and she's disappointed to see him receive so much support.

“It’s really telling that there are so many people that have chosen to give to this GoFundMe as though Joseph Mensah is some type of martyr," Motley said. "Living martyr...when you have three males of color who are gone.”

The Wauwatosa mayor says the Police and Fire Commission process could take a long time to complete and might not be resolved until October.