MILWAUKEE — A Milwaukee police officer convicted of a crime nine years ago has been added to Milwaukee County’s Brady list after TMJ4 inquired with the District Attorney’s office about his absence from the list.
RELATED: Milwaukee County Brady list reveals names of 191 officers with alleged credibility issues
The Brady list tracks officers with alleged credibility concerns due to allegations of past crimes, dishonesty, or other integrity issues.
If a Brady list officer is a witness in a criminal case, that information must be disclosed to defense attorneys, like Nate Cade,
"It's more concerning that this is something that almost a year later we're finding out about."
This all started with a tip from a law enforcement source questioning why MPD Officer Jacob Baczek wasn’t on the Brady list despite his conviction of a misdemeanor nearly a decade ago.
RELATED: MPD, MCSO say they don’t tell their officers if they’re put on the Brady list
After TMJ4 and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contacted the DA’s office, they immediately added him to the list. Now they’re reviewing dozens of criminal cases.
"We should expect better,” Cade said.
Cade is one of 17 defense attorneys who discovered one of the witnesses in his client’s case has a criminal history of his own.
Watch: Lawyer blames MPD after TMJ4 identifies officer missing from Brady list
"You start questioning is a case we should have fought for,” Cade said.
This letter from the DA’s office informed Cade that Officer Baczek is now a Brady list officer, nearly a decade after he was convicted of disorderly conduct in Waukesha County. It’s information Cade said he should have had before his client pleaded guilty to a crime.
"It's not something I had, it's not something my client had in order to make a decision so while they suggest it has no bearing, perhaps they're right, my client at least at a minimum should have had that choice,” he said.
Court records show Officer Baczek was arguing with his wife in 2015 at their home in Brookfield when he broke through a bathroom door with the butt of a rifle after she locked herself inside and broke her phone after she called 911.
Police records show MPD conducted an internal investigation following Baczek’s conviction and gave him a 30-day suspension for an integrity violation.
After TMJ4 brought the case to the DA’s attention, our Lighthouse team received an email saying, “We confirmed that we were not previously informed about this Waukesha conviction by MPD.”
“Who do you think dropped the ball here?” Jordan asked.
"Milwaukee police, hands down,” Cade responded.
“Why is that?” Jordan asked.
“This happened back in 2015. Not only did Milwaukee police know about it, internal affairs investigated it. Internal affairs authors a 26-page report. This is something they clearly knew about and should have disclosed."
The DA’s office told TMJ4 that Officer Baczek is a witness in 25 open criminal cases—and testified in one of 17 criminal cases that resulted in a conviction following his own conviction.
"This isn't the kind of thing that should get lost and it also gives me concern that bigger issues might be getting lost as well,” Rachel Moran said.
Moran is a professor at the University of St. Thomas who studies Brady list disclosure policies nationwide. She said this is not how the system is supposed to work.
“What could this mean for those 17 convictions?” Jordan asked.
"Most likely if there are people who were convicted who want to try and reopen their case based on this missing information, a judge would most likely have to assess whether the outcome of the trial might have changed had they been able to know about the disorderly conduct conviction and potentially use it at trial,” Moran replied.
Moran and Cade believe the underlying issue is systemic. Wisconsin lacks state laws requiring law enforcement agencies to establish standards for what is considered Brady material and what they have to disclose to district attorneys.
"You have some communities that might say this is not enough to report, you might have others that say absolutely, we should report,” Cade said. “I have grave concerns because you could have another officer, this could happen and no one would know."
The Milwaukee Police Department declined TMJ4’s interview request about this matter. Officer Baczek has yet to respond to our reporter’s inquiry.
If you want to see all of the current and former officers on Milwaukee County’s Brady list, our database in partnership with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Wisconsin Watch can be found below.
See all Duty to Disclose stories as they are posted here.
The Brady list is a compilation of current or former law enforcement officers deemed by the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office to have credibility issues. The underlying allegation can range from lying on exams to violent crimes. Just because an officer is on the list does not mean he or she was necessarily convicted or charged with a crime, or found guilty of internal misconduct. According to the office of District Attorney Kent Lovern, some cases may have resulted in an acquittal, been dismissed, or were amended to non-criminal offenses. The office says, "the database is accurate to the best of our knowledge as of February 27, 2025."
About this project
“Duty to Disclose” is a joint investigation by TMJ4, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Wisconsin Watch. The collaboration was prompted by the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s decision in 2024 to release its “Brady List,” a closely-guarded list of law enforcement officers with alleged credibility issues, after pressure from the news organizations.
TMJ4 Lighthouse reporter Ben Jordan, Journal Sentinel investigative reporter Ashley Luthern and Wisconsin Watch investigative reporter Mario Koran spent four months verifying the hundreds of officers on the list, discovering that it is frequently incomplete and inconsistent.
Readers with tips about the Brady List are encouraged to contact reporter Ben Jordan at ben.jordan@tmj4.com.
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