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Fired Mexican Milwaukee police officer sentenced to probation in stalking case
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Love Those Illegals & Black Obama Voters
Apr 2, 2014, 3:10:02 AM4/2/14
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A fired Milwaukee police sergeant convicted in a stalking case
was sentenced Friday to one year of probation, and his appeal to
get his job back will now move forward.
Alex Lopez, a 16-year veteran of the Milwaukee Police
Department, was charged with felony stalking last summer. He
pleaded guilty to an amended misdemeanor charge of unlawful use
of a phone, which carried a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail
and $1,000 fine.
In addition to probation, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge
Stephanie Rothstein on Friday sentenced Lopez to 60 days in the
House of Correction but stayed the jail time, which he will not
have to serve unless he violates probation. Lopez also is not
permitted to have contact with the victim or witnesses.
Police Chief Edward Flynn fired Lopez on Nov. 19. Lopez has
appealed his termination to the city's Fire and Police
Commission, which had been waiting for the conclusion of the
criminal case before setting an appeal hearing date. If Lopez
had been convicted of a felony, the appeal would not have moved
forward because state law bars felons from serving as police
officers.
Lopez has not been paid since he was fired, but if he is
reinstated during the appeals process, he will receive back pay,
said Michael Tobin, the commission's executive director.
Lopez was charged with stalking a woman whom he had started
dating in January 2013. The woman told police she tried to break
off their relationship in March, but Lopez talked her into
staying with him.
When she tried again to stop contact with him, Lopez began
continually calling, sending text messages and driving to her
house, which is outside Milwaukee County.
On June 18, he stayed at her house for several hours, pounding
on the door, ringing the doorbell and yelling for her to come
out. Between June 19 and Aug. 5, Lopez sent the woman more than
400 messages and also sent a Facebook message to one of the
woman's friends, accusing the woman of using illegal drugs and
asking her friend to perform a sex act on him.
"She wakes up screaming at night," Assistant District Attorney
Erin Karshen said Friday in court. "She's very fearful of the
defendant."
Karshen added that Lopez was the suspect in a domestic violence
investigation in 2011 that involved three separate incidents but
did not result in criminal charges.
During the investigation of the stalking case, a woman who has
worked as a prostitute told investigators that Lopez would
regularly stop her while in his marked squad car, had obtained
her personal cellphone number and had texted her sexual
comments, Karshen said, adding that the woman's number was found
in Lopez's phone.
"I think that he is choosing vulnerable women that he can
manipulate," Karshen said.
Lopez's attorney, Jonathan Smith, disputed those
characterizations.
"Clearly we have a different take on the matters here," Smith
said. "...We certainly don't agree with some of the allegations
that have been made concerning the reported conduct or
interaction with the purported prostitute."
Smith also reiterated that no charges were filed as a result of
the domestic violence investigation and noted that the
allegations did not affect Lopez's promotion to sergeant.
As for the stalking case, Smith said that Lopez felt he was
being manipulated by the woman. Further, the victim had contact
with Lopez after the stalking investigation began, Smith said.
"There are multiple problems in this relationship on both sides
of the equation, to be certain," Smith said.
The judge said that Lopez should have known better, especially
given his profession, and that the prior consensual relationship
between Lopez and the victim was irrelevant.
"He should be enough of a judge of human behavior to engage in
some conduct that would preserve his own livelihood and protect
himself," Rothstein said. "Even if we view the victim in the
most critical light, which I don't, this defendant, of all
people, should have know when to stop."
Lopez's conduct, as outlined in the court case, "indicates a
certain lack of control that shows a potential for harm to the
victim or to the community in general," she said.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/fired-milwaukee-police-
officer-sentenced-to-probation-in-stalking-b99235439z1-
252942781.html
was sentenced Friday to one year of probation, and his appeal to
get his job back will now move forward.
Alex Lopez, a 16-year veteran of the Milwaukee Police
Department, was charged with felony stalking last summer. He
pleaded guilty to an amended misdemeanor charge of unlawful use
of a phone, which carried a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail
and $1,000 fine.
In addition to probation, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge
Stephanie Rothstein on Friday sentenced Lopez to 60 days in the
House of Correction but stayed the jail time, which he will not
have to serve unless he violates probation. Lopez also is not
permitted to have contact with the victim or witnesses.
Police Chief Edward Flynn fired Lopez on Nov. 19. Lopez has
appealed his termination to the city's Fire and Police
Commission, which had been waiting for the conclusion of the
criminal case before setting an appeal hearing date. If Lopez
had been convicted of a felony, the appeal would not have moved
forward because state law bars felons from serving as police
officers.
Lopez has not been paid since he was fired, but if he is
reinstated during the appeals process, he will receive back pay,
said Michael Tobin, the commission's executive director.
Lopez was charged with stalking a woman whom he had started
dating in January 2013. The woman told police she tried to break
off their relationship in March, but Lopez talked her into
staying with him.
When she tried again to stop contact with him, Lopez began
continually calling, sending text messages and driving to her
house, which is outside Milwaukee County.
On June 18, he stayed at her house for several hours, pounding
on the door, ringing the doorbell and yelling for her to come
out. Between June 19 and Aug. 5, Lopez sent the woman more than
400 messages and also sent a Facebook message to one of the
woman's friends, accusing the woman of using illegal drugs and
asking her friend to perform a sex act on him.
"She wakes up screaming at night," Assistant District Attorney
Erin Karshen said Friday in court. "She's very fearful of the
defendant."
Karshen added that Lopez was the suspect in a domestic violence
investigation in 2011 that involved three separate incidents but
did not result in criminal charges.
During the investigation of the stalking case, a woman who has
worked as a prostitute told investigators that Lopez would
regularly stop her while in his marked squad car, had obtained
her personal cellphone number and had texted her sexual
comments, Karshen said, adding that the woman's number was found
in Lopez's phone.
"I think that he is choosing vulnerable women that he can
manipulate," Karshen said.
Lopez's attorney, Jonathan Smith, disputed those
characterizations.
"Clearly we have a different take on the matters here," Smith
said. "...We certainly don't agree with some of the allegations
that have been made concerning the reported conduct or
interaction with the purported prostitute."
Smith also reiterated that no charges were filed as a result of
the domestic violence investigation and noted that the
allegations did not affect Lopez's promotion to sergeant.
As for the stalking case, Smith said that Lopez felt he was
being manipulated by the woman. Further, the victim had contact
with Lopez after the stalking investigation began, Smith said.
"There are multiple problems in this relationship on both sides
of the equation, to be certain," Smith said.
The judge said that Lopez should have known better, especially
given his profession, and that the prior consensual relationship
between Lopez and the victim was irrelevant.
"He should be enough of a judge of human behavior to engage in
some conduct that would preserve his own livelihood and protect
himself," Rothstein said. "Even if we view the victim in the
most critical light, which I don't, this defendant, of all
people, should have know when to stop."
Lopez's conduct, as outlined in the court case, "indicates a
certain lack of control that shows a potential for harm to the
victim or to the community in general," she said.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/crime/fired-milwaukee-police-
officer-sentenced-to-probation-in-stalking-b99235439z1-
252942781.html
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