Crime & Safety
Police Protestor Appears in Court for Disorderly Conduct Charges
Bill Wisth, a Mequon man who also protested at a Thiensville restaurant in May over an all-you-can-eat buffet, claims his arrest by Port police in September was unwarranted, and that police beat him up. Law officials say he was uncooperative.
A Mequon man who accused Port Washington police of beating him up during an arrest in September following an attempted confrontation with his son will appear in court on Wednesday for two separate charges in connection with the incident.
Bill Wisth, 54, faces charges of disorderly conduct and obstructing an officer. He will appear in court at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday for a motion hearing; Wisth entered a not guilty plea in court on Jan. 22 and a trial date has been set for 8:45 a.m. April 2.
"All three of them grabbed me and threw me down on the hood of the car," Wisth had told Patch in September referring to Port police officers in his claim of brutality. "These people are beating me up — all I (wanted) was to check on my son."
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Law enforcement officials denied his accusations, saying Wisth was "uncooperative" and threatened his son.
Wisth told police he had not seen or heard from his son in several days, and he also was not answering his apartment door. The police arrived and eventually did find his son inside. That's when Wisth said he asked police to have his son provide him with $750 that he was owed.
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Port Washington Police Chief Kevin Hingiss confirmed that Wisth had called for a welfare check, "which turned out not to be true."
Port Washington officials recently denied an insurance claim made by Wisth in connection to the incident. The insurance company — EMC Insurance Companies of Brookfield — submitted a request to the city to deny Wisth's claim, saying, "We do not see any negligence on the part of the City of Port Washington." Aldermen unanimously approved the denial on Tuesday.
Wisth had made the news just a few months earlier than this incident for protesting Chuck's Place in Thiensville, after the restaurant had cut off his all-you-can-eat supply, according to WTMJ4. Restaurant workers say Wisth had eaten 12 pieces and was given eight more for the road in hopes he would leave, according to JSOnline.com, but he called police — and came back protesting two days later.
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