Morales reinstatement: Judge denies stay as time ticks down
MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee County judge has denied the city of Milwaukee’s request to stay his order to reinstate former Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales, or come to a settlement, as the city appeals the ruling.
Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Christopher Foley said Thursday, June 24, during a motions hearing on the request that the city and the city’s civilian fire and police oversight board are "not entitled to a stay" as requested by the city’s contracted attorney, Nathaniel Cade.
"I will speak to Mr. Cade’s concerns that my fingers are on the scale here. They are on the scale. I acknowledge that – and I do not like it. But I didn’t do this!" said an animated Foley, raising his voice.
"My fingers are on this scale. I’m forcing the city to obey the law, or buy their way out of this, because of what they did. Do I want to be in this position? Hell no. But I am in this position, they disregarded the law. The law accords him this remedy. And if they don’t afford him this remedy, then find a solution short of that that’s acceptable to both."
Cade says the city intends to appeal Foley’s denial of a stay.
Last month, Foley ordered the city to reinstate Morales to the rank of chief of police, but stayed that order for 45 days to provide time for negotiations between the parties. The date Morales would have to be reinstated, July 3, is quickly approaching.
But attempts to mediate the matter and reach a settlement, so far, have been unsuccessful. An attorney for Morales told FOX6 News the two sides met this past weekend, but did not reach an agreement. Last week Morales filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, alleging the city is stalling Foley’s order. Morales’ attorney, Franklyn Gimbel, said "if we settle, the suit will go away."
In a brief filed by the city, it argued the court had only three options: Accept the decision of the Fire and Police Commission, ask for additional facts from the FPC or reverse the FPC’s decision – the latter is ultimately the route Foley chose. As such, the city argues state statute only allows for a discharged or suspended member to be reinstated in their former position.
But the city said the court went beyond its authority of state statute with its order, saying Morales was "constructively discharged," (which is when an employee quits because of intolerable working conditions that a reasonable person in the same position would quit) despite not claiming so in his original petition to the court.
Attorney Frank Gimbel, Alfonso Morales (2020)
Attorneys for Morales argued this is another delay tactic, asked for the judge to deny the motion to stay pending appeal, and that the state statute in question doesn’t prohibit a court from reinstating a former chief of police to the position. Morales’ attorneys also argued the city never appealed the December 2020 order reversing the FPC’s decision.
"Do I think this was a coerced resignation? Yes," Foley said. "Do I think constructive discharge plays into this at all? No. Because of what I said earlier, looking to the statute at the moment in time in which the illegal demotion occurred."
Foley was also not swayed by the city’s arguments that Morales could seek retribution for perceived disloyalty from those in the department – hiring and firing at whim – and that there is no public harm. Conversely, Foley says it is Morales who has been suffered reputational harm, at least.
"He’s been stripped of his position as chief of police in the city of Milwaukee in a very public way, and stripped of that position in a process that was fundamentally flawed," said Foley. "He’s being deprived of his contractual opportunity to exercise the powers of this office, very prestigious office, and being deprived of that by virtue of a fundamentally flawed process."
Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission (FPC) and Milwaukee Police Department (MPD)
Both sides agree Morales was unfairly demoted by the Fire and Police Commission last August; Morales later retired from the department at the rank of captain.
Morales had drawn the ire of the civilian oversight body after he ordered officers to use tear gas to break up protests over George Floyd’s death in the city. Those actions marking the last straw for some FPC members who were upset over his handling of police-civilian incidents since the 2018 arrest of former Milwaukee Bucks player Sterling Brown. The city settled a federal civil rights lawsuit with Brown for $750,000 in May.
Last fall, Morales filed a lawsuit arguing the demotion came without a fair hearing, to which City Attorney Tearman Spencer agreed in filings with the court.
Foley reversed the FPC’s demotion of Morales in December.
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Milwaukee Inspector General Ronda Kohlheim released a summary of her investigation into conflicting reports from the FPC and the City Attorney's Office in February, surrounding the commission's decision to demote Morales from chief to the rank of captain. Kohlheim found the FPC "failed" to follow its own rules, and did not give Milwaukee’s former top-cop due process.
Foley took time Thursday to chastise the FPC in how it handled the matter.
"I have bit my tongue about this term, I haven’t used this term before. I just can’t help myself," Foley said. "This disgraceful conduct of the Commission has created complete uncertainty and total chaos in the community, in the department, and as to the leadership of that department and direction and future."
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