WEST ALLIS -- On May 28, 2015, surveillance video captured West Allis officers bringing a shirtless Javon Lattimore into the police department. He was pulled over for driving without a license.
"This was an individual who was combative with our officers and threaten our officers," explained Bob Fletcher acting police chief for West Allis Police.
Fletcher said Lattimore assaulted officers. The video showed Lattimore and police struggling when he was brought into the holding cell.
In the video you can see the officers try to get him to comply.
"They used the force they're trained to use," Fletcher said.
But there was not an internal investigation about force. Instead it centered around a shot administered to the inmate. The city said a paramedic came into the cell and gave Lattimore a shot in his arm -- seconds later, the young man passed out and was removed on a stretcher.
The 55 minute video the I-Team obtained showed Lattimore hitting his head against the cell walls minutes before the shot. Police said he asked for medical attention. Lattimore filed a complaint against police. He said he had no idea what was in the shot that caused him to become unconscious.
"It's my understanding they followed the protocol to administered the sedative," Fletcher said.
The investigation revealed Lattimore was given the drug Ketamin. Ketamin is an anesthetic which can cause people to lose consciousness. An internal investigation by West Allis Police determined that what happened in the cell was justified. But the I-Team discovered that the internal investigation was conducted by one of the officers present that morning and seen in the video.
The I-Team asked Fletcher if he could understand the public's concerns that an officer working that night in the jail cell with Lattimore also conducted the internal investigation.
"I can understand the concern but the investigation was fair and thorough but that officer wasn't involved in the entire incident but he was present," Fletcher said.
And while only a snippet of the video was posted online, causing it to go viral, police said in this case there's only one way to find the truth.
"The complete video would tell the story," Fletcher said.
Javon Lattimore reached out the I-Team after he was released from jail. The I-Team obtained police reports, Lattimore's medical records and the full 55 minute video from three different cameras from the May incident.
West Allis Police said it the investigation into this matter is closed. Lattimore pled guilty to assaulting an officer. He's currently working to reverse that plea.
