Tom Barrett renews call to fire Milwaukee police officer Michael Mattioli in death of Joel Acevedo
Bill Glauber
For the second time in two weeks, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett called Monday for the firing of police officer Michael Mattioli.
Mattioli faces a charge of first-degree reckless homicide in the death of 25-year-old Joel Acevedo.
Mattioli, off-duty at the time of the incident, is accused of putting Acevedo in a fatal "chokehold" during an April fight at his house. He is suspended from the police force but still receiving a paycheck.
“Whether the authority to fire Officer Mattioli lies with the Police Chief, who has the authority to fire officers under section 62.50 of the Wisconsin Statutes, or the Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission, which took over the case, one thing is clear: Officer Mattioli must be fired," Barrett said.
“At a time when our community and nation need to restore trust in police officers, it is a slap in the face to the residents of this city to be forced to continue to pay the salary of an officer charged with homicide," he said.
The Milwaukee Police Department released a statement Monday evening saying the Fire and Police Commission has the authority to fire Mattioli after the commission took over the department's internal investigation last month.
The department responded in the same way after Barrett's first letter to Morales.
"As of May 19, 2020, MPD was advised by our oversight body, the Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission, to cease all current investigations moving forward regarding Officer Mattioli and that FPC would be taking control of the investigation and discipline," Monday's statement reads.
Editor's note: An earlier headline on this story misidentified Joel Acevedo.