Former Milwaukee police detective pleads guilty to violating civil rights of handcuffed man

MILWAUKEE -- A former Milwaukee Police Department detective pleaded guilty on Tuesday, June 14th to depriving an arrestee of his civil rights by assaulting him while he was handcuffed to an interview-room wall.

49-year-old Rodolfo Gomez, Jr. pleaded guilty before a United States District judge to depriving an in-custody suspect of his civil rights.

The incident in question happened almost three years ago -- in August 2013. The allegation is that during an interrogation, Gomez repeatedly punched the victim in the face and head -- and kneed him in the torso. All of this allegedly happened while one of the victim's hands was handcuffed to a wall in an interview room inside the Milwaukee Police Department's Police Administration Building. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Gomez stopped punching and kicking the victim when a police lieutenant who heard yelling entered the room.