Waukesha County court dismisses charge against Brookfield man police mistook as suspect

A misdemeanor charge filed against a Brookfield man who was mistaken as a suspect, tased and arrested by Brookfield Police Department officers in November has been dismissed.

The prosecution filed a motion to dismiss the charge on Thursday and Waukesha County Court Commissioner Christopher Bailey ordered the charge be dismissed, online court records show.

Sean Star was charged on Dec. 11 with resisting or obstructing an officer, about a month after the incident that left him feeling traumatized and three days after the Journal Sentinel published a story about his arrest.

The court dismissed the matter without prejudice, which means charges could be refiled.

William Sulton, president of the ACLU Board of Directors and attorney who represented Star in court said Thursday the couple plans to sue the Brookfield Police Department.

Sulton was retained as counsel by Star on Dec. 19, court records show, more than a week after the Journal Sentinel reached out to Sulton and the ACLU of Wisconsin to review and analyze footage of Star's arrest.

On the night of Nov. 3, Star and his partner Carla Jones had just unloaded couches into their new Brookfield townhouse north of Greenfield Avenue when they got into their truck to leave their street, they told the Journal Sentinel.

Around the same time, officers with the Brookfield Police Department arrived at the same street in search of Christopher Braatz, a suspect in a report of physical abuse of a child, according to the criminal complaint.

Officers believed Braatz to be armed with a knife, Brookfield Assistant Police Chief Chris Garcia said. Officers saw a Chevy Silverado pulling away near Braatz's residence, the complaint states. When the officer shined his flashlight on the driver, he observed a white man with a beard and bald head looking at him.

It was Star in the vehicle, but police thought he was Braatz. Body cam footage shows Star go from being in his vehicle talking to officers to being taken to the ground by three officers, tased and handcuffed within less than two minutes.

Star couldn't confirm his identity to the officers because his I.D. was in his other car, he said.

About 15 to 20 minutes passed before a lieutenant confirmed to Jones that Star resembled the man they were looking for but was not the correct person.

"He looks exactly like the gentleman that we're looking for," Lieutenant Karl Turek told Jones in a police body camera video. “If he simply would have gotten out and cooperated with us, he wouldn't be in this situation."

Jones shared the latest update on the dismissed resisting charge on a fundraiser page she set up to cover legal fees, medical expenses and relocation costs for Star and their family. Because of the incident, the couple plans to move their family of five out of Brookfield, even though they just moved to the city in October.

"Thank you everyone for the continued support," she wrote. "Relocation is now priority."

Braatz, the suspect police intended to pursue Nov. 3, is facing a felony charge for child abuse and intentionally causing harm, according to online court records. Braatz was charged Nov. 6. He will appear in Waukesha County Circuit Court for a preliminary hearing on Jan. 3.

Bridget Fogarty can be reached at bfogarty@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Charge dismissed against man Brookfield police mistook as suspect