Morales, Milwaukee: $626K tentative settlement reached
Milwaukee, Morales reach settlement after former chief's demotion
The city has reached a tentative settlement with former Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales. The terms of the settlement are yet to be finalized. However, Mayor Tom Barrett indicated the settlement would be in the area of $626,000.
MILWAUKEE - The city has reached a tentative settlement with former Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales. The terms of the settlement are yet to be finalized. However, Mayor Tom Barrett indicated the settlement would be in the area of $626,000.
"During the course of the negotiations, I felt it was fair for us to give $500,000 to Mr. Morales. During the negotiations, in addition to that, there's an additional amount. It's all grouped together in one number, in essence, to cover legal fees and some other matters, as well. That brings the total to roughly $626,000," Barrett said.
The settlement would also be subject to the approval of the Milwaukee Common Council.
Alfonso Morales
"It's never an easy situation when the city is being sued. It's even more difficult when we already acknowledged that the process was flawed," said Alderman Ashanti Hamilton. "What we want to be able to do is put this chapter behind us."
"This has been a challenging matter for all involved, and I'm very pleased we have this tentative settlement," Barrett said. "We felt it was important to resolve this matter."
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Chief Morales and the city have agreed to a stipulation to postpone Morales' return date from July 15 to Aug. 1, if necessary, to effectuate the terms of the settlement, a statement from the mayor's office said.
Morales was demoted in August 2020. He's been fighting to get his job back since.
The deal is equivalent to the chief's remaining salary on his four-year contract plus legal fees.
"We want to be able to turn the page on some of the issues that we’ve had in this situation as well as the others on the Fire and Police Commission," said Hamilton.
Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales
Morales sued the city after he was demoted by the Fire and Police Commission in August 2020. In May, a judge ruled in favor of Morales.
"The judge said, 'You will return him to the job of police chief with a window of 45 days to try and reach a financial settlement,'" said Frank Gimbel, Morales' attorney.
Gimbel said the settlement shows the city's former top cop was treated unfairly.
"It will include a recognition of the fact that he was wronged by those people that had control of his employment," said Gimbel.
It's an ending to a long chapter, with the former chief and the city moving forward.
"At the end of the day, he got his just rewards," said Gimbel.
Morales will continue to get his full chief retirement pension. Gimbel said Morales wants to continue to work in law enforcement.
The Common Council is expected to vote on and pass that settlement later in July.
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