A Milwaukee police squad in front of the Municipal Court downtown. (Photo | Isiah Holmes)
Activists in Milwaukee are calling for more community control of police as the public learns about a Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) officer arrested by federal authorities last week. Juwon Madlock, who had 10 years of service at MPD, is accused of a variety of crimes stemming from his alleged relationship with a local gang.
A federal complaint accuses Madlock — among other things — of possessing a machine gun, selling guns and ammunition to local gang members and using police databases to furnish intelligence to those gangs about rivals and informants. The complaint alleges that Madlock worked with “a violent street gang in Milwaukee” identified by federal authorities as the “Burleigh Zoo Family.” It’s unclear whether the gang chose the name or whether it was bestowed on the group by law enforcement investigators.
The Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, a local group which has called for accountability and community oversight of law enforcement, released a statement noting that Madlock appears on Milwaukee County’s Brady List of officers with problematic histories. A searchable database compiled by TMJ4 states that at the time Madlock was placed on the Brady List, he was still employed at MPD.
Records related to Madlock’s disciplinary history maintained by the Fire and Police Commission (FPC) mention that Madlock and another officer, Benjamin Bender, violated integrity standards for failing to investigate a reported shooting from a victim who came into MPD’s District 7 in 2021. Representatives from the FPC didn’t respond to a request for comment.
The Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression questions why an officer with Madlock’s history was allowed to remain on MPD, and whether other officers who have violated police standards continue to serve on MPD. “We need these questions answered now, and we need concrete steps from Chief Jeffrey Norman to rectify this situation,” the group said in a statement.
A press release from MPD states that Chief Norman “expects all members, sworn and civilian, to demonstrate the highest ethical standards in the performance of their duties and was extremely disappointed to learn about the misconduct in this case. Chief Norman wants to remind the public that everyone is afforded the right of due process under the law, and as such, are innocent until proven guilty.”
Madlock was arrested on March 12, after agents from the FBI office of Milwaukee and MPD’s Internal Affairs division “made contact” with him, according to the department’s press release. The trail to Madlock’s door began on Feb 13, when MPD’s Special Investigations Division, tactical units, and federal task force officers of the FBI’s “Milwaukee Area Safe Streets Task Force” executed a search warrant of a home in the Milwaukee suburb of Greenfield. Their target, 29-year-old Cobie Hannah Jr., was wanted by the Milwaukee County sheriff according to the federal complaint. Although Hannah was ordered not to have weapons, when officers searched his home, they allegedly found firearms, stolen license plates and false vehicle registrations.
After seizing and searching an iPhone and laptops, investigators found a text message chain from a number they later linked to Madlock using “law enforcement and open-source databases,” the complaint states. The text messages reveal conversations in which Madlock discusses selling guns and ammunition to members of the “Burleigh Zoo Family” according to the complaint. The messages also discuss what investigators believe are plans to steal cars.
In separate instances, Madlock appeared to be providing gang members with information about police movements and patrols, so that alleged gang members who were wanted could avoid law enforcement. Some of the messages suggested Madlock used law enforcement databases to renew plates which were also used by gang members to avoid law enforcement. One of the more damning messages suggests that Madlock used law enforcement information databases to identify informants and find addresses to arrange shootings among rival gangs. The unchecked use of such databases by law enforcement, particularly when it comes to surveillance of citizens without a clear public safety reason, is a growing concern among privacy and civil liberties groups.
After Madlock was brought into custody, he allegedly spoke with investigators about the text messages and what they meant. A federal search warrant was served on Madlock’s North Side Milwaukee home. A handgun “affixed with a machinegun conversion device’ was found in the basement. When asked about the various guns he allegedly offered for sale, the complaint states, Madlock claimed the weapons were owned by his parents and brother. Madlock’s father allegedly told law enforcement later that the guns were indeed his, but that his son did not have permission to sell them, and that he didn’t know about the machine pistol.
The complaint also mentions that Madlock claimed that Hannah was “a source of information for him, in his capacity as a police officer.” Madlock did not sign Hannah up as an official confidential source, however, and had not taken the required training to use informants. Nor could he show investigators instances — such as through text messages —- of times when Hannah served as an informant or source of information. Instead, the federal complaint states, “the situation was reversed: MADLOCK, the police officer, is providing information to HANNAH, the wanted fugitive. MADLOCK did not have a cogent response.”
The Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression says the case points to a need for greater community oversight of the police. Although Madlock was arrested over the course of the federal investigation, he remained on the force for years after being flagged on the Brady List as an officer with integrity issues. The fact that the integrity concern was raised over Madlock’s lack of investigating a reported shooting raises further red flags in the eyes of community members. “If the Chief of Police will not hold his own police officers accountable, we need a mechanism through which the people of Milwaukee, the people who are policed, can hold them accountable,” the Alliance said in a statement.
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