A Milwaukee police officer who resigned as part of a deal to resolve criminal charges for kicking a handcuffed subject, and the colleagues accused of trying to cover for him, now face a federal civil right lawsuit over the 2017 incident.
Rafael Rosales led several police departments on a high speed chase after a traffic stop in Milwaukee before he was stopped in Franklin. Police pulled him out of the car and handcuffed him on the ground.
Michael Gasser approached and kicked Rosales in the head so hard his nose broke and he later went into an epileptic seizure.
Rosales' lawsuit, filed in Milwaukee federal court Thursday, names as defendants, the city, Gasser and eight current MPD officers: Kim Lastrilla, James Filsinger, Adam Stahl, Michael
Schwandt, Damon Wilcox, Matthew Rittner, Thomas Marcus and Joseph Scheuring.
“We are concerned that the Milwaukee Police Department and prosecutors have done nothing about the other officers involved in this police crime,” said Flint Taylor, one of Rosales’ lawyers.
Rosales is currently incarcerated.
The Milwaukee Police Department issued this statement: "The Milwaukee Police Department takes all incidents of police misconduct seriously. Michael Gasser resigned from the Milwaukee Police Department on August 30, 2018, and is no longer a member of our agency."