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Seven people who say they were illegally searched by the Milwaukee police have taken the first step toward filing civil suits, contending their constitutional rights were violated.

Among the complainants are a man who sought emergency room treatment for rectal bleeding after a cavity search, a woman who says a female officer aggressively grabbed her breasts in front of male officers and a man who says a group of officers broke down his door and searched his house without cause.

The city did not adequately train, supervise or control its officers and failed to punish officers previously engaged in similar behavior, according to notices of injury filed Friday with the city. Under state law, such notices must be filed in advance of a lawsuit.

The city and Police Department contributed to the civil rights violations by promoting "a belief that police actions will never be scrutinized and/or prosecuted; and by encouraging 'misplaced loyalties' and a 'Code of Silence' among police officers in refusing to report unlawful actions by police officers and by refusing to cooperate with officials investigating unlawful actions by police officers," the notices say.

Some of the complaints listed in the documents are part of a John Doe investigation into allegations that seven officers and a supervisor may have sexually assaulted people and violated their civil rights while conducting rectal searches for drugs. Milwaukee County prosecutors are conducting the John Doe, an investigation in which they can compel testimony and subpoena documents without public knowledge.

Simultaneously, the civilian Fire and Police Commission and the department's internal affairs division are reviewing a list of complaints dating back a couple of years. Federal officials are closely monitoring the process, as is the Milwaukee Common Council.

The eight police personnel, previously assigned to District 5, were reassigned and stripped of their badges and guns in March pending the outcome of the investigation.

Since the investigation began, at least two drug dealing charges have been thrown out amid allegations that the evidence was obtained illegally. In one of those cases, the questionable search occurred in District 7. The District 7 police report, obtained by the Journal Sentinel, shows that officers not involved in the questionable searches knew about them and that such searches occurred outside District 5, where the initial investigation began.

Deputy City Attorney Rudolph Konrad said Monday he had not yet seen the notices and could not comment on pending or threatened litigation. Department spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz did not respond to an emailed request for comment. Officers named in the documents either did not respond to emails or could not be reached via email.

Attorney Jonathan Safran, who represents the seven complainants, called the alleged civil rights violations "humiliating and dehumanizing."

"The information we have obtained would support the fact that these types of violations have been occurring for a number of years by City of Milwaukee police officers," he said. "It is also obvious that City of Milwaukee police officers, beyond only the 5th District, have been aware of and participating in these violations, despite them being clearly against Police Department rules, policies and procedures, and Wisconsin statutes."

Five of Safran's clients allege they were injured during cavity searches involving rectal penetration - one of them twice. Two of them also say police illegally seized money.

Rules for cavity searches

Both state law and Milwaukee Police Department policy prohibit police officers from doing a cavity search under any circumstances. Such searches can be performed only by a doctor, physician's assistant or registered nurse. Done improperly, they could be construed as sexual assaults.

The woman whose breasts were grabbed by an officer is alleging an illegal strip search.

Under state law, a strip search is defined as "a search in which a detained person's genitals, pubic area, buttock or anus, or a detained female person's breast, is uncovered and either is exposed to view or is touched by a person conducting the search."

Strip searches may not be conducted in public. If a woman is being searched, male officers may not be present, and vice versa.

Before doing a strip search, an officer must get written permission from either the police chief or a supervisor - unless the officer expects to find a weapon. After the search, the officer is required to fill out a report that lists the names of the officers involved and the time and place of the search. The officer is required to give a copy of that report and of the written authorization to the detainee.

An improper strip search is illegal and carries a maximum penalty of 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000 for the officer who conducted it.

The woman also alleges that police illegally searched her car, causing $2,000 in damage.

At a March 22 news conference, a reporter asked Police Chief Edward Flynn to spell out acceptable search procedures.

"There are a lot of gradations here," Flynn replied. "I'm not making any excuses for anybody. Just speaking in theory, these are dynamic situations in which people are moving assertively, trying to ascertain if there's a threat to them or if somebody is holding contraband. There are things you can do that come close to being a body cavity search but aren't, and there are things you can't do."

The department tries to draw clear lines between what is allowed and what is not, he said.

"And if we're on the wrong side of those clear lines, we've got to get a handle on it, rapidly," he said. "At the very least, it's a serious, serious training issue, for crying out loud, but if we're in fact violating that policy willfully, then we've got to take appropriate action."

Flynn never explained where those lines are.

The notices of injury do not list specific dollar amounts for the damages sought, which is typical. But settlements and jury verdicts in civil rights cases can be substantial. For example, the City of Beloit recently settled a federal civil suit for $265,000 after a teenage boy claimed police violated his constitutional rights by strip-searching him on the street and slamming his head into a car window.

Illegal search claims

March 3, 2011. Officer Michael Vagnini, in the presence of other unidentified officers, is accused of conducting a strip search and a cavity search on a man near N. 27th St. and W. Atkinson Ave. The same man alleges that Vagnini again conducted a strip search and cavity search on July 7, 2011, in the booking room at District 7 in the presence of Officer Stephanie Seitz and other unidentified officers.

July 7, 2011. Vagnini, in the presence of Seitz or Officer Stephanie Piekarski and other unidentified officers, is accused of conducting a strip search and cavity search on a second man in the booking room at District 7.

Aug. 12, 2011. Vagnini, in the presence of Officers John Shipman, Jacob Knight, Jeffrey Cline, Paul Martinez and Gregory Kuspa, and possibly other unidentified officers, is accused of conducting a strip search and cavity search during a traffic stop in the 3900 block of N. 22nd St.

Feb. 26, 2012. Unidentified officers are accused of conducting a strip search and cavity search, as well as illegally seizing money from a man in the 3500 block of N. 10th St.

Feb. 26, 2012. Unidentified officers are accused of conducting a strip search and cavity search on a second man in the 3500 block of N. 10th St. The man sought treatment for rectal bleeding.

Feb. 29, 2012. Sgt. Jason Mucha and Officers Shawn Burger, Brian Burch, Daniel Knitter, Lori Kowalefski, Paul Vento, Daniel Vandervest, Joseph Szcyubialka, Joseph Serio, Vagnini and other unidentified officers are accused of breaking into and searching the home of Marvin Ealy in the 3300 block of N. 26th St. without reasonable suspicion of a crime. Ealy is not alleging a strip search or cavity search.

March 19, 2012. Officer Angela Juarez is accused of aggressively grabbing a woman's breasts in full view of other unidentified officers in the 3000 block of N. 13th St. The woman also claims unidentified officers illegally searched her car, resulting in $2,000 worth of damage.