Joseph Mensah trial ends in hung jury; retrial set for September
Joseph Mensah trial ends in hung jury
Years after former Wauwatosa police officer Joseph Mensah shot and killed 17-year-old Alvin Cole, his trial ended in a hung jury.
WAUWATOSA, Wis. - A jury failed to reach a decision on whether a former Wauwatosa police officer used excessive force when he shot and killed a 17-year-old outside of Mayfair Mall in 2020.
Hung jury
In Court:
Joseph Mensah shot and killed 17-year-old Alvin Cole in February 2020.
Alvin Cole (L), Joseph Mensah (R)
In federal court on Thursday, March 20, the trial ended with a hung jury. Deliberations were underway throughout the day, with the jury coming back to the judge to ask multiple questions, which led to the mistrial.
A retrial is set for September.
Earlier in the day, attorneys gave closing arguments to the eight-person jury.
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The attorney for Cole's family said, "If the gun wasn't pointed at Joseph Mensah, he didn't have a right to shoot."
Mensah's attorney said the Cole family has several theories and claims about what happened that day that cannot be proven.
Teen shot
The backstory:
On Feb. 2, 2020, then-Wauwatosa police officer Mensah shot and killed Cole. It was the third deadly shooting in five years involving Mensah.
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That fall, the Milwaukee County District Attorney announced Mensah would not be charged in Cole's death. He said Cole ran from police carrying a stolen handgun while squad car audio and testimony from fellow officers said Cole fired a shot while running away and refused commands to drop the gun.
Mensah resigned from the Wauwatosa Police Department in fall 2020 and later got a job with the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department.
Families sue Mensah
Dig deeper:
The families of Antonio Gonzales, Jay Anderson and Cole filed federal lawsuits in 2021 and 2022 against Mensah and the city's police department, alleging that Mensah used excessive force and the department promoted racism. The lawsuits were consolidated in September 2022.
Joseph Mensah federal lawsuit, judge dismisses 2 of 3 claims
A federal judge has dismissed two of three claims against a former Wisconsin police officer who killed three people of color in five years.
Before he shot Cole, Mensah shot Gonzales, 29, in 2015 after Gonzales approached him with a sword and refused to drop it, according to prosecutors. He shot Anderson in 2016 after he found Anderson, 25, sleeping in a car in a park after hours. Mensah said he opened fire when Anderson reached for a gun on the passenger seat.
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U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman in Milwaukee then dismissed the Gonzales and Anderson families' claims. He allowed the Cole case to continue.
The Source: FOX6 News attended the trial and used prior coverage.