Mensah prosecutors want NTSB-style police shooting investigations

WAUWATOSA, Wis. - Two special prosecutors have decided not to charge a Wisconsin sheriff’s deputy in the fatal shooting of a man sleeping in a park. The prosecutors announced Wednesday, June 1 that they didn’t find sufficient evidence to charge Waukesha County Sheriff’s Deputy Joseph Mensah in Jay Anderson Jr.’s death in 2016, echoing Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm’s decision not to charge Mensah, who was then a Wauwatosa police officer.

While no charges are being brought in the case, both the judge and special prosecutors called parts of the 2016 investigation flawed. The special prosecutors outlined a series of recommendations to help improve these types of cases in the future.

They expressed some concerns with the way the initial case was conducted and said they want to help build trust between the community and police.

Protests erupted in the halls of the Milwaukee County Courthouse moments after special prosecutors announced no charges against Mensah in the shooting death of Jay Anderson, Jr.

Joseph Mensah, Jay Anderson Jr.

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"We believe there is still a lot of unanswered questions," said Kimberley Motley, Anderson family attorney. 

While not everyone agrees with the decision not to charge the former Wauwatosa police officer, they do agree the initial case was not conducted properly.

"I continue to believe that this entire tragedy was avoidable," said Judge Glenn Yamahiro. "That’s a separate and completely distinct question from what is provable beyond a reasonable doubt."

Dashcam footage shows the moments prior to then-Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah shooting and killing Jay Anderson Jr. in Madison Park on June 23, 2016.

Both the judge and the two special prosecutors pointed out what they say were flaws in the 2016 investigation, from selective use of body cameras to the process of allowing neighboring Milwaukee police to investigate the shooting.

"It raises questions," said Judge Yamahiro. "It raises concerns. It raises suspicions. That will continue to raise issues. That will continue to delegitimize and erode people’s confidence."

They also pointed out a failure to record key witness interviews. 

The special prosecutors listed the ways these types of investigations can be improved, saying change needs to come from the Wisconsin Legislature. 

Jay Anderson

"We hope this will lead to, maybe, better investigations and, perhaps, to a process that can eventually eliminate or reduce the need for tragedies like these to occur," said Scott Hansen, special prosecutor. 

Anderson's family vowed to continue to seek charges, even though their trust is gone.

"I’m not finished fighting," said Linda Anderson, Jay Anderson's mother. "I want Joseph Mensah in jail."

The special prosecutors recommend an NTSB-style investigative unit in Wisconsin to examine shootings by and of police.