Documentary Details Wauwatosa WI Police Misconduct Against Teens

The following post was submitted by Isiah Holmes via the CopBlock.org Submission Page. It discusses a documentary he is filming involving police misconduct within a Milwaukee-area police department in Wisconsin. Included below his commentary are three preview clips of that documentary.

Hello,

My name is Isiah Holmes, a 19 year old aspiring journalist from Milwaukee Wisconsin. I’m contacting you hoping to reach out regarding a police misconduct documentary project I’ve been working on over the last few years.

The film focuses on the Wauwatosa Police Department, a suburb near Milwaukee, and the relationship between it, local teens, and the drug war, which is ever present in the city. The department also has a very long and documented history of outstanding acts of racial discrimination and basic bigotry. This, although discussed in the film, is not at the center of the story – the teens are.

I could go into deeper detail regarding the nature of WPD and why I felt they needed to be spotlighted, but this would equate to a very lengthy message. Instead, I’ve provided three links at the bottom of this paragraph leading to three sneak peeks to the film which have been released.

The first depicts the departments racial profiling history, via archived news articles and law suit read outs – all of which were overturned by the judge, by the way. The second showcases just two particularly disturbing though commonly told accounts by teens of both being stalked by the police. One boy, Adam, was searched illegally by an undercover officer, threatened with bodily harm, then questioned. Lastly, the third video details a redaction policy which the department used to keep what could only be called a city wide crack down focused on high school aged teens from the public’s knowledge.

I strongly feel that what’s happening in Wauwatosa is a picture perfect microcosm of the effects of both the drug war and policing tactics in this country. Feel free to contact me via email, jeff.hardy031@gmail.com or through twitter, @isiahholmes181 for any comments or questions. Your support in spreading word of the film is critical in getting the word out, the people have a right to know what happened and what might be coming.

Understand that WPD pilots a lot of policing tactics and equipment for larger departments before such things are widely distributed. What happens here will eventually happen everywhere.

Best, keep up the good work.

– Isiah Holmes