Dear WPPA:

I want to express my gratitude and appreciation to the WPPA for the help we received in a recent critical incident in West Allis. We had an officer-involved shooting on Thursday, June 28. Three of our officers were at a home attempting to defuse a situation when a man pointed a handgun at the officers. In short, an officer fired a round, killing the man.

When I got the call from the station, the first thing I did was call the Madison office. I called about 10:00 p.m. and left my house and started driving to the station. Despite being in northern Wisconsin, WPPA Executive Director Tom Bahr returned my call within three minutes. Tom and I discussed the incident, and he recommended we have an attorney talk with the three officers and sit in on any interviews.

About five minutes later, Mark Hollinger, one of the WPPA’s staff attorneys, called me. I gave him a brief overview of the incident, and he indicated that he was on his way to the Police Department.

All three officers were able to speak with Attorney Hollinger and have him present during their interviews with the District Attorney.

I want to thank the entire WPPA staff for the quick, professional, and thoughtful response. It’s because of situations like this that our local went full service. I’m very happy that we were able to get this kind of prompt assistance the first time we needed it.

Jim Schumitsch, President
West Allis Professional Police Association

Mr. Bahr:

My name is Scott Fields and I am a police officer for the City of Evansville Police Department. Recently I utilized the services of the WPPA as I was accused of violating departmental policy in the handling of a high-speed police pursuit that ended in a crash and resulted in a sixteen-year-old’s death. These accusations were launched by a citizen who happened to be the victim’s sister.

I first had contact with my WPPA business agent, David Hendrickson, who represented me during my internal investigation interview. I found Mr. Hendrickson to be very polite, caring and knowledgeable in his duties. Mr. Hendrickson took the time to explain the procedures and the future steps in this investigation. I found this very helpful and insightful as a fairly new officer.

Next, I had contact with WPPA Staff Attorney Andrew Schauer. Mr. Schauer represented me during the events that led up to a disciplinary hearing. Like Mr. Hendrickson, I found Mr. Schauer to be very courteous, caring, and knowledgeable. I liked the fact that Mr. Schauer was easily reached and very understanding to my wishes and concerns. I was very impressed with Mr. Schauer’s persistence, even after enduring a severe back injury during my case.

I truly believe that I was cleared of any wrongdoing by our police and fire commission because of Mr. Hendrickson’s work and insight, coupled with Mr. Schauer’s arguments and knowledge. Furthermore, I wish to express my appreciation for all that the WPPA office and your staff have done for me. It pleases me to know that there are good people like Mr. Hendrickson and Mr. Schauer working for the WPPA protecting “the boys in blue.”

Thank you for your time.

Scott Fields