Here's what happened between Alfonso Morales' appointment as police chief and his demotion eight months later
Sophie Carson
Much has changed since Milwaukee residents packed a City Hall meeting room in December as members of the Fire and Police Commission voted to appoint Alfonso Morales to a four-year-term as police chief.
Through the nine-month saga surrounding Morales and the civilian board that oversees his employment, developments have occurred quickly and sometimes behind closed doors.
The drama came to a head Thursday, when the commission voted unanimously to demote Morales to captain and appointed Assistant Chief Michael Brunson Sr. to the position of acting chief.
Here's a refresher on what happened between those two moments.
December-March: Morales appointment delayed, and Fire and Police Commission faces own controversy
Dec. 16, 2019: Commission Chairman Steven DeVougas says the board will not take up a vote to reappoint Morales — who'd been fulfilling the term of former Chief Edward Flynn, who retired in the middle of a four-year term — to a full term as chief, despite previous plans to vote in December. DeVougas cites unanswered questions.
Dec. 17: The Milwaukee Police Association, the union of rank-and-file officers, accuses DeVougas of ethics violations after it learns he accompanied Kalan Haywood Sr., a politically connected real estate developer accused of sexual assault, to an interview with a Milwaukee police detective. The Journal Sentinel reports on the interview later that day.
The story raises questions about whether it was a conflict of interest that DeVougas accompanied Haywood while also chairing the commission that oversees the Police Department.
Two commissioners, Nelson Soler and Raymond Robakowski, call a meeting for the next day to vote on Morales' reappointment.
Dec. 18: After a 2½-hour meeting in which several residents spoke in favor and against Morales, the commission votes 4-2 to appoint him to a four-year term. DeVougas casts a no vote.
Jan. 8, 2020: Milwaukee Ald. Bob Donovan sends a letter to the state Office of Lawyer Regulation, asking it to determine whether DeVougas violated ethics rules when he accompanied Haywood to the interview. The city attorney's office that week had said DeVougas didn't break any commission rules because its ethics code didn't cover cases like his.
A month later, the Office of Lawyer Regulation says it will not open a formal investigation into DeVougas.
Feb. 6: The Fire and Police Commission authorizes an independent investigation into DeVougas' conduct and into the interview — which was held at the Sojourner Family Peace Center, where police are only allowed to question victims, not suspects.
DeVougas rejects a call from Robakowski to go on administrative leave during the investigation.
Feb. 26: The Milwaukee Police Association files a formal ethics complaint against DeVougas and asks the city's ethics board to investigate four potential violations.
March 19: The commission selects former federal prosecutor Mel Johnson to lead the independent investigation.
June and July: Protests and renewed scrutiny of police and DeVougas
June 11: Milwaukee police commanders face scrutiny from commissioners over the department's use of tear gas and rubber bullets in protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. A subcommittee reviews the department's use-of-force policies.
June 30: The commission meets in executive, or closed, session to discuss Morales' six-month performance review. It had been accepting feedback from the public via email.
July 2: Johnson presents the findings of his independent investigation to the commission: DeVougas likely violated the city’s code of ethics, and Morales said DeVougas has promised to reappoint him as chief if he'd agree to fire an officer involved in the arrest of Milwaukee Bucks player Sterling Brown.
DeVougas also lied about his legal representation of Haywood in the interview with police, Johnson finds.
Also found: Haywood's interview was hastily arranged. Morales and other high-ranking officers had inquired about the case's status because Haywood was about to join the board of a newly formed fundraising organization for the Police Department.
National experts tell the Journal Sentinel that the timing of the interview may have compromised the sexual assault investigation.
July 6: Griselda Aldrete, executive director of the Fire and Police Commission, set to be reappointed the next day, withdraws from consideration, citing "political point-scoring" at City Hall. She says she will stay on until a replacement is appointed.
July 11: DeVougas says he will not step down from the commission board and maintains he did nothing wrong. Morales and Mayor Tom Barrett say they have lost confidence in DeVougas.
July 15: Morales says he is being set up to fail by the board's inaction in recent months. It had canceled four of its six scheduled meetings since April.
July 16: The commission meets in executive, or closed, session with Morales after canceling the public portion of its scheduled meeting. What is discussed is unclear.
During the meeting, an agenda for a July 20 meeting is posted online. The only item: "a resolution to vote and issue directives for Police Chief Alfonso Morales."
July 20: The commission issues a lengthy series of directives to Morales. Among several items on the to-do list: provide records on Brown's arrest and work with the commission to discontinue the use of tear gas and pepper spray during civil unrest.
The directives come with a warning: "failure to comply fully and promptly with these directives shall result in disciplinary action by the board, including discharge, suspension, or reduction in rank."
The 20-minute-long meeting sparks transparency and open records concerns.
Earlier in the day, the city ethics board votes to open an investigation into the circumstances detailed in three of the four counts in the Milwaukee Police Association ethics complaint against DeVougas.
July 29: Morales' attorney, Franklyn Gimbel, says a member of the Fire and Police Commission told a high-ranking police official that the oversight board intends to fire the chief.
That police official was being considered as Morales' replacement, Gimbel said.
August: Morales' final days as chief
Aug. 4: Morales and Brunson appear in a Police Department video defending officers' use of tear gas and pepper spray during recent civil unrest. One of the directives from the commission required the department to publicly explain its use of chemical irritants.
Aug. 5: The Milwaukee Police Department issues a report arguing the commission's list of directives, which initially came with an Aug. 6 deadline, were riddled with factual errors, unclear requirements and could be illegal.
The department also says the commission's request for information on several incidents was problematic. The incidents are part of internal investigations, pending cases or civil litigation and releasing information could compromise the cases, the department argues.
Aldrete extended some directive deadlines after the Police Department pushed back on the feasibility of completing the tasks by Aug. 6, the report says.
Aug. 6: Before a Fire and Police Commission meeting, DeVougas releases a statement saying he has been vilified and his name and reputation "have been dragged through the mud."
The commission votes unanimously to demote Morales. It appoints Brunson as acting chief.
The deadline for three directives had not passed. Some commissioners call Morales a liar and say he failed the city.
Commissioners refuse to say if the remaining directives apply to Brunson. They remain in the meeting room for 20 minutes behind closed doors after the video feed is turned off, a possible violation of open meetings law.
Barrett calls the meeting "not good government" and "completely lacking in transparency."
The commission also votes to name Soler to the position of chair, replacing DeVougas, who remains on the board.
Aug. 7: Brunson is sworn in as acting chief.
Contact Sophie Carson at (414) 223-5512 or scarson@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @SCarson_News.