Laundry list of violations for Waukesha detective, but he's back on the job?!



WAUKESHA COUNTY (WITI) -- He's a Waukesha County detective, whom co-workers have called "a hazard on the job" -- someone "who's been asleep at the wheel for more than a decade." So why does he still have a job?

If you knew all of the things Detective Pete Korns admitted to doing, you might think he'd be in a lot of hot water.

But after an internal investigation, he's back on the job -- a job some of his co-workers don't think he should have.

Korns has been a Waukesha County detective for 26 years, but after a three-day suspension, he's now back on the job -- even though he admitted to violating numerous department rules, over and over again.

"There is literally a laundry list of different violations," Waukesha County Sheriff Dan Trawicki said.

Hundreds of pages of documents released on Tuesday, June 3rd shed light on an internal investigation that started in 2012.

That's when Korns' wife, Natasha, was caught burglarizing a neighbor's home.

Investigators say she used her husband's lock pick kit to break into the home in the middle of the day.

Since then, Korns' co-workers have caught him sleeping on the job and snoring, using his work computer for personal things, like accessing Craigslist more than 6,000 times and researching steroids.

In January, he drove his squad car for two months without a valid driver's license -- and often left work early or was missing for "large chunks of time."

Korns has been in trouble for not properly storing evidence. He admitted keeping drug evidence in his desk for 20 days before recording it. He also failed to properly inventory a necklace in a sexual assault investigation.

Documents show he used his position as an officer to get special treatment, had inappropriate conduct with a felon, and at one point referred to a city of Waukesha police officer as "that lesbian detective."

Korns is also accused of "double dipping." While he was clocked in at the Sheriff's Department, investigators say he was also working a second job at Carroll University.

That's the only allegation Korns denies.

Waukesha County Sheriff Dan Trawicki says despite Korns' recent misconduct, he's not a bad guy.

"I've been here 35 years, so I've known this employee Pete Korns from the day he started. I've supervised him personally for many, many years and I've realized overall he is a good employee," Sheriff Trawicki said.

Sheriff Trawicki says a three-day suspension was fair.

"Based on his history and his track record as an employee for 26 years and supervising him for many of those years I felt it was fair. Could it have been a longer suspension? Most definitely. Could it have been shorter? I don't think so," Sheriff Trawicki said.

Meghan Dwyer: "How is it fair to all of the other good cops out there to have to work alongside someone like that?"

"It's not fair to them at all if that behavior should continue. However, I think that everyone is entitled to another chance depending upon the facts and circumstances," Sheriff Trawicki said.

This was Korns first suspension.

Since 2011, he's been reprimanded nine times, but Sheriff Trawicki points out they were all minor infractions.

"If I thought this was a person who deserved to be terminated then I would make that recommendation. I've done it before," Sheriff Trawicki said.

Sheriff Trawicki says he feels like Detective Korns' behavior has changed since he's been back at work.

Sheriff Trawicki says his goal isn't to punish officers, but to help change their behavior.

The Sheriff's Grievance Committee agreed with the Sheriff's recommendation of a three-day suspension for Korns.