Witness: Milwaukee Police Officers used Racial Slurs During beating of Black Man

A man who said he saw off-duty police officers assault his friend says two officers used racial slurs as they threatened him, according to a notice of injury filed against the city. Lovell Harris filed the notice Friday, the first step toward a possible lawsuit. Harris was with Frank Jude Jr., who was severely beaten last October by a dozen men who witnesses said identified themselves as officers. Prosecutors say they expect to file charges in the case within two weeks. District Attorney E. Michael McCann has said his investigation has been hampered by the unwillingness of some police officers to tell all they know. Jude filed a notice of injury Wednesday. Two women, who said they were falsely detained by the officers, Katie Brown and Kirsten Antonissen, also filed notices against the city Friday. Harris' notice reveals some previously unreleased details about the assault, most notably that the off-duty officers used racial slurs. Harris and Jude are black. Brown and Antonissen are white, and the people who beat Harris and Jude are white, Brown and Antonissen said. [more]