"Laws are there to be followed:" Was police oversight law followed in Dontre Hamilton investigation?



MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The co-sponsor of Wisconsin's police oversight law is questioning whether authorities followed that law while investigating the shooting death of Dontre Hamilton. Those questions revolve around the role Milwaukee police played in the aftermath of that shooting on April 30th, 2014 in Red Arrow Park.

Act 348 mandates that after a police-involved death, an outside agency must lead the investigation. Milwaukee Alderman Joe Davis Sr. joined Dontre Hamilton's brother Nate Hamilton on Monday, February 16th. They believe Milwaukee police had too big of a role in this investigation, and the co-sponsor of the police oversight bill says he agrees.

"Laws are there to be followed, not to be tested," Davis said.

Davis and Nate Hamilton are questioning the independence of the Dontre Hamilton shooting investigation. Former Milwaukee Police Officer Christopher Manney shot and killed Hamilton in April 2014. He was terminated from the Milwaukee Police Department for his handling of Hamilton that day.

The shooting happened just one week after Governor Scott Walker signed Act 348 into law. The co-sponsor of that legislation also questions whether state investigators actually led the way.

"The DCI investigators assigned to it looked like they were in a role of just review and doesn`t really seem like an active role of direction and evaluation," Rep. Garey Bies (R-Sister Bay) said.

Milwaukee police referred questions about the Hamilton case to the Wisconsin Department of Justice, which MPD brought in to handle the investigation. A review of the final report shows the DOJ assigned two "special agents in charge" and another seven "special agents" to the case.

Attorney General Brad Schimel said in a statement Monday:

"I am proud of the work done by the supervisors and investigative staff at the Division of Criminal Investigation. I know they can be relied upon to conduct these officer-involved incident investigations objectively, efficiently and in a way that leaves the public confident in that investigation."


The report also shows a number of interviews on scene were conducted by Milwaukee police, including the initial interview with Manney himself.

Nate Hamilton says he wants federal investigators involved in critical incidents from the very beginning.

"I think you have to call the U.S. Attorney`s Office and say 'hey, we don`t have enough people. We need you to send your investigators out,'" Nate Hamilton said.

Both Nate Hamilton and Garey Bies say another issue is who ultimately decides whether an officer is criminally charged. They both believe an outside district attorney should make that decision.

As the law is written now, it's up to the district attorney in the county where the incident occurred.

The Milwaukee County District Attorney decided against charging Christopher Manney.

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