In the biggest police purge ever in Milwaukee, Chief Nannette Hegerty fired nine officers and disciplined four others in connection with the October beating of Frank Jude Jr., the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Stressing that most officers do a good job, Hegerty said she will not tolerate misconduct and called the episode “deplorable” and a “scar” on the department. “Those who engage in this type of conduct are not worthy of wearing the badge of a Milwaukee police officer. The citizens of this city deserve better,” Hegerty said.
Seven months after the attack on Jude, Hegerty’s action marks the end of an internal investigation that began March 1. The fired nine officers either were accused of beating Jude or were present and didn’t intervene. She demoted the on-duty sergeant in charge of the scene and suspended the first two on-duty officers to respond 76 days each without pay. One officer who punched Jude according to at least two witnesses, got the lightest penalty, a 23-day unpaid suspension.