7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Case Name: Patrick Fehlman v. James Mankowski
Case No.: 22-1467
Officials: Easterbrook, Jackson -Akiwumi, and Lee, Circuit Judges
Focus: Public Employee Immunity
In 2019, Fehlman served as the interim police chief for the Neillsville Police Department. The following year, Mankowski was appointed as the permanent chief, and Fehlman resumed his role as a rank-and-file officer. Over the next few months, Fehlman expressed concerns about the department’s management, which Mankowski ignored. Fehlman, along with other officers, sought a meeting with the Police & Fire Commission (PFC), during which he raised various issues about Mankowski’s conduct. These included claims that Mankowski created a fearful environment among officers, displayed unprofessional behavior, and, while on duty, made inappropriate remarks to a bar owner about the owner’s wife. Fehlman also alleged that Mankowski ordered officers to disable their body cameras in violation of department policy, verbally abused suspects, implemented radio talk changes that jeopardized officer safety, and prioritized speed limit enforcement over responding to a child abuse allegation at a school.
In response to Fehlman’s actions, Mankowski retaliated by harassing him, revoking his work credit card, and threatening him with charges of insubordination. Fehlman eventually resigned from the Neillsville Police Department. Furthermore, Mankowski allegedly interfered with Fehlman’s job search by making...
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