After the price tag for the City of Milwaukee's proposed settlement with ACLU of Wisconsin over police stop-and-frisk practices ballooned to $6 million, officials are trying to limit their costs by capping fees for a consultant linked to the deal. A tentative deal set to go before a Common Council committee Monday would limit the city's costs and fees for the consultant to about $1.5 million.
If that proposal passes the Judiciary and Legislation Committee and the full Council, and is approved by Mayor Tom Barrett, the city's settlement costs would total about $3.4 million.
The previous proposed settlement stalled in May after aldermen learned the city's costs could skyrocket to $6 million or more, a steep increase from the initial figure of $1.9 million.
If approved, the deal would involve the city paying an estimated $1.5 million over the next five years to a Chicago-based consultant, Hillard Heintze.
Hillard Heintze would then oversee changes to procedures within the Milwaukee Police Department to address concerns that the department's search practices unfairly target African-Americans and Latinos.
The tentative settlement would include a five-year consent decree requiring the department and the city's Fire and Police Commission, the civilian oversight board, to reform stop-and-search practices, improve data collection and require officers to undergo more training on stops and searches.
The consultant would monitor compliance with the agreement, which will remain under the jurisdiction of the federal court, and issue periodic reports. Aldermen previously raised concerns that approving unknown fees for the consultant would amount to writing a blank check.
Ald. Michael Murphy said he's hopeful an agreement will be reached soon.
"We've gotten to a point where I think we've been able to reduce the costs and come to equitable terms as it relates to the consultant," Murphy said. "I think they're almost there. I don't want to be too optimistic, but hopefully we'll get to a place where both parties will agree."
The lawsuit did not seek damages, and most of the monetary settlement would go toward litigation costs, primarily for expert witnesses and depositions, the ACLU has said.
The lawsuit, filed by ACLU of Wisconsin in February 2017, accuses Milwaukee police of routinely stopping thousands of minorities without cause or suspicion.
Such stops are a violation of the Fourth Amendment, which requires police to have “reasonable suspicion" that the person is dangerous or has committed a crime, the suit said.
The suit also accused officers of conducting stop-and-frisks “motivated by race and ethnicity” in violation of the 14th Amendment. It was filed against the city, the Fire and Police Commission and then-Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn.
Earlier this year, the city filed a motion to dismiss the suit now that Flynn, the "sole architect" of those practices, had retired. Flynn denied that his department practiced stop-and-frisk and defended high-volume traffic stops as effective in reducing nonfatal shootings, robberies and car thefts.
Police Chief Alfonso Morales, who was appointed after Flynn's retirement, ended the Neighborhood Task Force that performed most of the traffic stops. He has said there will be no quotas for stopping and questioning people.
The Journal Sentinel reported last fall that police misconduct has cost Milwaukee taxpayers at least $17 million in legal settlements since 2015, forcing the city to borrow money to make the payouts amid an ever-tightening budget.
When factoring in interest paid on the borrowing and fees paid to outside attorneys, the amount jumps to at least $21 million, the Journal Sentinel found. The costs far outstrip the $1.2 million the city sets aside each year for settling all of the claims it faces.
