Milwaukee Co sheriff's deputy fired from MPD after domestic violence arrest

Oak Creek Police officers arrested Christopher Romero Sanchez while he was a recruiter in Milwaukee. The prosecutor declined to charge him and his career in law enforcement continued.

By Peter Cameron, THE BADGER PROJECT

A Milwaukee County sheriff's deputy was arrested for domestic violence in 2021 while he was a probationary officer for the Milwaukee Police Department, a Badger Project investigation found.

The Milwaukee Police Department fired Christopher Romero Sanchez in September 2021, according to a list of reported officers obtained from the state Department of Justice, and the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office hired Romero Sanchez as a deputy in February 2023.

On September 6, 2021, Oak Creek police officers responded to a 911 call at an apartment in the city, according to documents obtained by The Badger Project through a public records request. Romero Sánchez's girlfriend told police that while the couple was out drinking, their puppy was pooping on the floor.

That led to an argument, which escalated when Romero Sanchez covered the woman's mouth and nostrils when she screamed for help, she said. He also slapped her in the face and choked her, she told police.

The woman's name was redacted from the documents.

Romero Sánchez, “totally cooperative,” told responding officers that his argument with the woman was only verbal, according to the police report. But officers said they observed scratches on the woman's cheeks, a cut on her lip and “redness” on her neck.

The woman told police that Romero Sánchez had been physically violent in the past, including putting one of his handguns to her head. He repeatedly told her that she could not report him to the police because it could jeopardize her police career, she said. . And he had threatened to kill her and himself if she reported him.

Oak Creek police officers arrested Romero Sánchez and charged him with strangulation and suffocation, as well as battery.

On September 9, 2021, the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office alerted law enforcement that it had declined to charge Romero Sanchez, according to documents obtained by The Badger Project in its public records request.

When asked how it arrived at this decision, the prosecutor's office said in an email that it “could not say the reason why the case was not prosecuted, because it falls under the doctrine of the work of the prosecutor”.

The attorney work product doctrine protects attorneys from the need to share documents they generate while researching a case in anticipation of trial. Domestic violence charges against the accused are often dropped when the victim refuses to cooperate with prosecutors.

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The Milwaukee Deputy Sheriffs' Association, the deputies' union, did not respond to multiple email and voicemail messages seeking comment and requests to speak to Romero Sanchez.

When asked why he was hired, James Burnett, a spokesman for the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office, noted that Romero Sanchez was never convicted and the charges against him were dropped.

“Under the law, this agency is not permitted to deny employment or consider arrest when evaluating an applicant's suitability for employment, because arrests do not amount to criminal charges or criminal convictions,” Burnett said.

The Milwaukee County sheriff employs about 250 patrol deputies, including Romero Sanchez, but not including officers, Burnett said. It also employs about 200 correctional deputies who work in the county jail.

The total number of law enforcement officers in Wisconsin is at an all-time high, as it has been slowly declining for years. Police chiefs and sheriffs lament the declining number of people wanting to get into law enforcement and the difficulty in filling positions with good candidates.

The Badger Project is a nonpartisan, nonprofit journalism organization supported by the citizens of Wisconsin.