NEENAH, WI (WTAQ) – A day after the group seeking to remove Neenah Police Chief Kevin Wilkinson withdrew its complaint, the city’s Police Commission agreed Wednesday to drop its proceedings.
It was supposed to be a discussion of the merits of that formal complaint filed by a group affiliated with Eagle Nation Cycles as they continue to seek justice for the December 2015 shooting death of Michael Funk by two police officers.
Instead it was more of an opportunity for President of the Police Commission Jim Prosser to respond to claims made by the group that the five-member board would not be impartial.
“My concern was that they made a number of allegations attacking the credibility of this commission and those were not called for in order to withdraw their complaint,” Prosser told FOX 11. “I felt the need to make a statement about this commission and how we think we do business.”
The withdrawal filing made Tuesday by the group specifically highlighted Kaufert and the city’s Police Commission.
“Mayor Kaufert and the Police Commission have a well-documented history of allowing the Chief and various police officers to get away with all sorts of misconduct including, but not limited to, murder,” the filing stated.
Then, in an attached affidavit, Erato, Kayellen Reetz and Daniel Dringoli individually signed a recounting of a meeting with Kaufert on May 10.
“During that same meeting Mayor Kaufert also stated, ‘We have been advised by Jim Godlewski (Neenah City Attorney), as well as the City’s Insurance Carrier’s Attorney’s to take no action against the officers due to pending litigation.’“
The group that brought the complaint forward says this is not the end of their fight for Funk. They say it’s likely they’ll bring a similar complaint back in the future.
