Milwaukee's National Lawyers Guild hosts Kimberley Motley's presentation on Wauwatosa police

MILWAUKEE (CBSS58)--The Milwaukee National Lawyers Guild hosted attorney Kimberley Motley in a virtual presentation Thursday, April 1. Motley shared her research, experiences, and court filings against the Wauwatosa Police Department.

"The police I believe overstepped their boundaries in dealing with the protestors and I believe they violated a lot of constitution rights," Kimberley Motley said.

Motley says the Wauwatosa Police Department should be investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice. She says protestors were targeted. She mentioned an unlawful curfew that she claims was put in place last October. This comes after the Milwaukee County DA did not charge former Wauwatosa police officer Joseph Mensah in the shooting death of Alvin Cole.

“I have no problem fighting against people in Wauwatosa who I believe think they are above the rule of law.”

The Milwaukee’s National Lawyers Guild, The People’s Revolution, the Milwaukee Turners and other local organizations sponsoring the presentation on Thursday. It was open to the public. People were able to ask questions.

Criminal defense attorney Ramon Valdez says lack of justice and racism in the community are concerning.

"The absolute militarism of our police force, there’s really no need for them to be showing up in armored squad cars," Valdez said.

During the presentation, Motley went into detail about arrests in Wauwatosa that she claims were made up.

“What I received back was over 40 fabricated arrests that didn’t happen," she said.

Motley said between 2015 and 2017, most traffic stops in Wauwatosa involved African Americans.

"Approximately 64 percent of traffic stops were Black identified people, that is an absurdly high number for police stops for a city that only has five percent of a Black identified five percent population.”

Motley also shared background history on the Wauwatosa Police Department. She says officers attended parties called "Martin Luther King." 

‘These are racist parties," Motley said. "Thrown and attended to by Wauwatosa police officers.’’

The Peoples’ Revolution says they too believe there needs to be a thorough investigation.

"Wauwatosa Police Department is very corrupt when it comes to the minorities that show up in their back yard," said Sedan Smith, a member of the TPR.

Wauwatosa Mayor Dennis McBride sent the following statement to CBS 58:

“Motley’s presentation today was part of her litigation strategy. For this reason, I cannot comment, other than to say her lawsuit has no factual or legal merit and we expect to fully prevail.”