Two Milwaukee police officers charged in connection with the death of Keyshawn D. Thomas in 2022; the family is represented by Ben Crump

Two Milwaukee Police Department officers were charged with felony charges related to the death of an inmate by overdose in 2022.

Officers Donald Krueger and Marco Lopez face separate felony charges for mistreating 20-year-old Keyshawn D. Thomas while he was in custody and misconduct in public service by making false entries, respectively. Both officers were removed from their positions after the incident. Lopez is still suspended. Krueger retired in 2022 after 25 years with the department, according to a departmental press release.

According to the criminal complaint, at around 1:55 a.m. Wednesday, February 23, 2022, officers arrested Thomas during a traffic stop to obtain a warrant. After he was taken to the Fifth District precinct, marijuana and cocaine were found on him. The man admitted to using various drugs, including cocaine, marijuana and ecstasy.

Thomas also admitted this when Krueger called him to the station. Although Thomas said he didn’t want to go to the hospital, he was visibly ill, throwing up, heaving and sweating.

Krueger told Thomas that he would call an ambulance, but he never did. Instead, he placed him in a holding cell.

According to the complaint, Krueger did not notice that the man was taking drugs, despite the fact that Thomas confessed to it, and the examination of Thomas’s state of health was recorded on the video cameras of the precinct.

When Kruger’s shift ended, Lopez took over booking duties, which included checking every prisoner every 15 minutes. Investigators determined that Lopez made false entries about his health checks. This included a statement that he visually checked each prisoner, which the videos show he did not.

In total, Lopez reportedly missed 10 checks between 9:15 am and 3:00 pm. López’s reports also contain inaccurate prisoner counts.

During missed checks, Lopez was seen watching something on his computer with other officers, drawing, checking his cell phone, and working on his tablet.

In a statement to the investigator, Lopez said that his job was to “visually check the prisoners” and that “every time you do a check, you have to do an audio and visual check on the prisoners.”

The story goes on

“When I was conducting audio checks on the prisoners, I stood at the reception desk and listened to the prisoners,” Lopez said. Audio checks are not part of the procedure, the complaint says.

When Lopez’s shift came to an end, another officer took his place. Around 5:43 pm, the officer discovered that Thomas needed medical attention. Rescue measures were taken by an officer and the Milwaukee Fire Department. Thomas was pronounced dead at 6:19 pm.

An autopsy showed that Thomas died from acute mixed drug intoxication. Fentanyl, fluorofentenyl, cocaine and methamphetamine were found in his system.

The investigator found that both officers neglected their duties.

Both officers face a maximum sentence of up to three and a half years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Kruger was paid about $91,300 in 2021 and Lopez was paid about $86,000, according to city payrolls. Since his retirement, Krueger has received about $5,000 in monthly pension payments since his retirement, according to city records.

MPD provided the following statement in a press release about the allegations:

“The Milwaukee Police Department requires the highest degree of integrity from all employees, and if any of the employees violate the code of conduct, they will be held accountable. Our employees must not discredit what this department stands for, especially when they take an oath to preserve and protect life. … The Milwaukee Police Department extends its deepest condolences to the Thomas family on the loss of a loved one.”

Renowned civil rights lawyer Ben Crump represents the Thomas family.

The Thomas family is represented by nationally recognized civil rights lawyer Ben Crump. In a statement, Crump and his partner Stephen Hart said that “Kashawn’s death could have been prevented if protocol had been followed by the officers who were responsible for him at the time of his arrest.”

Crump represented families in the United States in civil cases seeking financial compensation for personal injury and civil rights violations. He has represented the families of Tyre Nichols, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others. Louisville awarded the Taylor family $12 million in 2020, while Minneapolis awarded the Floyd family $27 million in 2021.

“Kishon’s family will never know if he could have been saved with proper medical attention,” the lawyers wrote.

“Officer Lopez lied about following protocol and checking the prisoner he was in charge of, and Krueger didn’t give Keyshawn the medical attention he clearly needed when he saw him wince. The role of the police is to help people, but when Keyshawn needed help the most, he was ignored and left for dead.”

Keyshawn Thomas was a beloved member of the extended family.

Thomas was the father of two kids. He loved basketball and cars, and was remembered as the happy, outgoing caretaker of a large family.

He was the second oldest in a family of nine children. His older sister Armada Cleveland told Sentinel magazine a year ago that he constantly takes care of family members, doing everything from being an advocate to helping others with their studies.

She added that he enjoyed playing basketball and rapping with friends, driving at night and collecting model cars.

His family also said that Thomas bought them groceries, bought them medicines, and shared his food stamps with them.

Two days after Thomas died in police custody, his friend Darreon Parker-Bell opened fire in the Fifth District precinct. Parker-Bell’s girlfriend, then two years old, later told the Journal Sentinel that Parker-Bell reached a “critical moment” when Thomas died.

Parker-Bell fired several shots, including two shots towards the counter where the officer was sitting. When the officers returned fire, Parker-Bell fled. It was later discovered in the backyard. The officers fired several shots at Parker-Bell after he pointed a gun at them. He was taken and treated at a local hospital.

Parker-Bell was charged with one count of first-degree attempted murder and seven counts of reckless endangering security. He is due to appear before a jury in April.

Ashley Luthern and Drake Bentley of The Sentinel magazine contributed to this report.

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This article originally appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 2 Milwaukee cops charged in 2022 death of Keyshon Thomas.

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