MILWAUKEE -- The ACLU of Wisconsin issued the following statement today after the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office made the decision not to charge Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah more than ten months after the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Alvin Cole.
Chris Ott, Executive Director of the ACLU of Wisconsin, said the following:
“The decision not to charge Wauwatosa Police Officer Joseph Mensah in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Alvin Cole is reprehensible, and reflects the systemic lack of accountability for police, who continue to kill and hurt Black and Brown people without legal consequences. Law enforcement has a long track record of resorting to deadly force in situations where it isn’t necessary, especially against people of color. It is unacceptable that officers continually evade consequences when they abuse their power. We support the recommendation of former U.S. attorney Steven Biskupic, who was hired by the Wauwatosa Police and Fire Commission, and said that Mensah should be fired from his position because there was an ‘extraordinary risk’ that he would be involved in a fourth fatal shooting should he keep his job.”
