Sheboygan police oversight board dismisses complaint alleging misconduct by chief, complainant petitions court for review
SHEBOYGAN – The boyfriend of a former Sheboygan police officer wants a judge to review the Board of Police and Fire Commissioners' dismissal of his complaint alleging the police chief mishandled investigations into sexual assault within the police department.
Justin Daniels first filed a complaint with the Sheboygan Police Department in February. Days later, the City of Sheboygan's HR director, Adam Westbrook, informed Daniels that the city would not be looking into the complaint, because "there was insufficient information to proceed with an investigation at that point," Sheboygan City Attorney Chuck Adams said. Daniels then filed a complaint with the Sheboygan Board of Police and Fire Commissioners in April.
The Board of Police and Fire Commissioners is a five-member citizen oversight board tasked with disciplining police officers and firefighters. An evidentiary hearing into Daniels' complaint had been scheduled for July 11, but at an oral motion June 27, the Board dismissed Daniels' complaint because he missed a filing deadline.
According to the Board of Police and Fire Commissioners' policies and procedures, a complaint against a police officer or firefighter must first be filed with the police or fire department. If a citizen is not satisfied with the decision made by the police or fire department, they can then file a complaint with the Board — but no later than 10 days after the department's decision.
Daniels, the board said in its June 27 decision, filed his complaint 37 days after the deadline.
Daniels filed a petition for a writ of certiorari, which is a court process that seeks judicial review of a decision made by a lower court or government agency, in Sheboygan County Circuit Court Aug. 16. In the petition, he states that "excusable neglect" should apply, because he "did not do anything in bad faith," and the late submitting of the complaint "did not hinder the process or prejudice the chief of police in any way."
What does Daniels allege in his complaint?
Daniels' complaint claims Sheboygan Police Chief Christopher Domagalski botched the response to investigations into sexual misconduct within the police department that were conducted between January and May of 2021.
As a result of three internal investigations, 12 officers out of the 62-officer patrol force were disciplined or verbally admonished for sexual misconduct. The harshest penalty, given to former officer Bryan Pray, was a two-week unpaid suspension.
Daniels argues this was not an adequate penalty, and that the police department's policies continue to allow unacceptable behavior to continue.
Among the findings of sexual misconduct from the 2021 investigations was an incident where Pray took a partially nude photograph of a former officer and shared it with other officers without her consent.
The officer, identified in the investigation reports as Officer 8, reported a 2019 incident following a training in which officers were instructed to drink heavily to practice using a breathalyzer, then continued to drink afterward. In a hotel hallway, Officer 8 lifted her shirt and "flashed" Pray, at his request. Pray took a photo.
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When Pray showed the officer the photo the next morning, she told him to delete it. Pray said he would, but did not. The next year, he showed the image to other Sheboygan police officers while on duty, despite knowing Officer 8 would “most definitely” feel embarrassed and demeaned as a result, according to records.
Daniels argues in his complaint that this incident should have warranted a criminal investigation.
State law prohibits creating or sharing nude images taken without consent where the person depicted had a reasonable expectation of privacy. Depending on the facts of the case, it can be a Class I felony, punishable by up to 3.5 years imprisonment and a $10,000 fine. Officers convicted of felonies can face decertification, which bars them from working in law enforcement in Wisconsin.
Daniels filed a similar complaint in Sheboygan County Circuit Court in December requesting a court determine if Pray committed a crime. A Calumet County judge appointed a special prosecutor to the case, Matthew Leusink, the Waushara County district attorney. The case is pending, with no current hearing dates scheduled.
Despite the board's dismissal, Daniels is trying to get an evidentiary hearing to present evidence that Chief Domagalski and other admistrators mishandled the response and are responsible for allowing sexual misconduct.
"I think this department has a long history, even since this incident, of mistreating women," Daniels said.
Sheboygan County District Attorney Joel Urmanski, in January 2023, placed Pray on a “Brady list,” a list of law enforcement officers with potential credibility issues, which Urmanski is required by law to provide to defense attorneys. Pray resigned the following month, in February 2023, about two years after the investigation of Officer 8's complaint.
What does Daniels ask in the appeal?
Daniels' petition to Sheboygan County Circuit Court argues his complaint should not have been dismissed "on a simple oversight," and that an evidentiary hearing should be held so all evidence may be properly presented.
In his petition, Daniels challenges the time limit rule, and questioned why the Board of Police and Fire Commissioners was not provided the complaint until a hearing May 9, when he filed his complaint with the board April 12.
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"I also argue if that time frame is so important and necessary, then the City Attorney should not be withholding the complaint from the PFC for an additional 30 days or so," Daniels' petition reads.
Adams said this was simply procedural; Board members cannot receive a complaint individually, so they had to wait until a meeting when all commissioners were present.
"They received it timely," Adams said.
However, Bob Lettre, a former president of the Board of Police and Fire Commissioners who has continued attending meetings involving the sexual misconduct situation since his term was not renewed by the commission in spring 2022, said during his 29 years on the Board, meetings to address complaints or other issues were set up within days.
What else do we know about the investigation into sexual misconduct within the police department?
About four months into the 2021 investigation into her complaint, Officer 8 resigned, citing a hostile work environment.
Then-Sheboygan Human Resources Director Vicky Schneider expressed concerns that the police department's investigation into sexual misconduct was not adequate. Because of her concerns, the city hired outside attorneys to review the police department's investigation in the summer of 2021, Mayor Ryan Sorenson told the Sheboygan Press earlier this year.
However, after Officer 8 filed a complaint a few months later with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development's Equal Rights Division, alleging workplace discrimination and retaliation, the city of Sheboygan pivoted the external review of whether the internal investigation was done properly to an investigation focused on defending the city against Officer 8’s complaint.
In February 2022, Schneider filed her own complaint with the state's Equal Rights Division, alleging former city administrator Todd Wolf retaliated against her after she spoke about her concerns.
According to the Department of Workforce Development, Schneider withdrew her claims with the Equal Rights Division July 3.
Adams said the withdrawal of a complaint with the Equal Rights Division doesn't necessarily mean the case is complete. A person may withdraw a complaint if they plan to bypass the Department of Workforce Development and go directly to court.
But police records show allegations of sexual misconduct did not end after the 2021 investigations.
In June, the Sheboygan Press received a redacted report from Chief Domagalski of an internal investigation conducted in January into another allegation of sexual misconduct by Pray.
While the internal investigation found that the allegation of discriminatory sexual harrassment was "unfounded," it did determine Pray violated other department policies that he had just been reprimanded for in June 2021 — including engaging in conduct that is "unbecoming of a member of the department," neglecting work duties, and accessing protected information for non-work-related purpose.
The report includes interviews with Pray and a female officer. Both indicated they had shown each other pornographic videos during a conversation between their squad cars on an afternoon in January. Pray told the investigator the female officer first made the conversation sexual, while the female officer said Pray was the one to direct the conversation that way.
"The actions of the officer's proven offense and the record of the officer being disciplined for the same offense in a short period of time demonstrates the officer's inability to comprehend what is required of the officer to complete the officer's duties to the standard expected of the Sheboygan Police Department," the report states.
Pray resigned Feb. 8., days after the internal investigation was completed and after Wisconsin Watch and the Sheboygan Press published a story on the Sheboygan Police Department's handling of sexual misconduct among officers.
Contact Kelli Arseneau at 920-213-3721 or karseneau@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ArseneauKelli.
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This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Sheboygan police oversight board dismisses complaint against chief
