Chapter 175

175.44 175.44 Law enforcement use of force.

175.44(1) (1) Definitions. In this section:

175.44(1)(a) (a) “Law enforcement agency” has the meaning given in s. 165.83 (1) (b).

175.44(1)(b) (b) “Law enforcement officer” has the meaning given in s. 165.85 (2) (c) and includes a tactical emergency medical services professional, as defined in s. 165.85 (2) (fh), certified under s. 165.85 (3).

175.44(2) (2) Use of force.

175.44(2)(a) (a) The sanctity of human life. In serving the community, law enforcement officers shall make every effort to preserve and protect human life and the safety of all persons. Law enforcement officers shall also respect and uphold the dignity of all persons at all times in a nondiscriminatory manner.

175.44(2)(b) (b) Use of force. When using force, a law enforcement officer is required to act in good faith to achieve a legitimate law enforcement objective. A law enforcement officer is authorized to use force that is objectively reasonable based on the totality of the circumstances, including:

175.44(2)(b)1. 1. The severity of the alleged crime at issue.

175.44(2)(b)2. 2. Whether the suspect poses an imminent threat to the safety of law enforcement officers or others.

175.44(2)(b)3. 3. Whether the suspect is actively resisting or attempting to evade arrest by flight.

175.44(2)(c) (c) Deadly force. A law enforcement officer may use deadly force only as a last resort when the law enforcement officer reasonably believes that all other options have been exhausted or would be ineffective. A law enforcement officer may use deadly force only to stop behavior that has caused or imminently threatens to cause death or great bodily harm to the law enforcement officer or another person. If both practicable and feasible, a law enforcement officer shall give a verbal warning before using deadly force.

175.44(3) (3) Duty to report noncompliant use of force.

175.44(3)(a) (a) A law enforcement officer who, in the course of his or her law enforcement duties, witnesses another law enforcement officer use force that does not comply with the standards under sub. (2) (b) or (c) in the course of that law enforcement officer’s official duties shall report the noncompliant use of force as soon as is practicable after the occurrence of the use of such force.

175.44(3)(b) (b) A person who intentionally fails to report a noncompliant use of force as required under par. (a) may be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned not more than 6 months or both.

175.44(4) (4) Duty to intervene.

175.44(4)(a) (a) A law enforcement officer shall, without regard for chain of command, intervene to prevent or stop another law enforcement officer from using force that does not comply with the standards under sub. (2) (b) or (c) in the course of that law enforcement officer’s official duties if all of the following apply:

175.44(4)(a)1. 1. The law enforcement officer observes the use of force that does not comply with the standards under sub. (2) (b) or (c).

175.44(4)(a)2. 2. The circumstances are such that it is safe for the law enforcement officer to intervene.

175.44(4)(b) (b) A law enforcement officer who intervenes as required under par. (a) shall report the intervention to his or her immediate supervisor as soon as is practicable after the occurrence of the use of such force.

175.44(4)(c) (c) A person who intentionally fails to intervene as required under par. (a) or intentionally fails to report an intervention as required under par. (b) may be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned not more than 6 months or both.

175.44(5) (5) Whistleblower protections. No law enforcement officer may be discharged, disciplined, demoted, or denied promotion, transfer, or reassignment, or otherwise discriminated against in regard to employment, or threatened with any such treatment, because the law enforcement officer reported, or is believed to have reported, any noncompliant use of force as required under sub. (3) or (4); intervened to prevent or stop a noncompliant use of force as required under sub. (4); initiated, participated in, or testified in, or is believed to have initiated, participated in, or testified in, any action or proceeding regarding a noncompliant use of force; or provided any information, or is believed to have provided any information, about noncompliant use of force as required under sub. (3) or (4).

175.44 History History: 2021 a. 75; 2023 a. 218.

175.46 175.46 Mutual aid agreements.

175.46(1) (1) In this section:

175.46(1)(a) (a) “Border county” means any of the following:

175.46(1)(a)1. 1. Any Wisconsin county that has land that is within 5 miles from any land of a physically adjacent state, as measured, where applicable, by any land that is above the ordinary high water mark.

175.46(1)(a)2. 2. Any county of a physically adjacent state which county has land that is within 5 miles from any land of Wisconsin, as measured, where applicable, by any land that is above the ordinary high water mark.

175.46(1)(b) (b) “Law enforcement agency of a physically adjacent state” means a governmental unit of one or more persons employed by a physically adjacent state or a political subdivision of a physically adjacent state for the purpose of preventing and detecting crime and enforcing state laws or local ordinances, employees of which unit are authorized to make arrests for crimes while acting within the scope of their authority.

175.46(1)(c) (c) “Law enforcement officer of a physically adjacent state” means any person employed by a physically adjacent state or any political subdivision of a physically adjacent state, for the purpose of detecting and preventing crime and enforcing laws or ordinances and who is authorized to make arrests for violations of the laws or ordinances he or she is employed to enforce.

175.46(1)(d) (d) “Physically adjacent state” means Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois or Michigan.

175.46(1)(e) (e) “Political subdivision” means a county, city, village or town.

175.46(1)(f) (f) “Wisconsin law enforcement agency” means a governmental unit of one or more persons employed by this state or a political subdivision of this state for the purpose of preventing and detecting crime and enforcing state laws or local ordinances, employees of which unit are authorized to make arrests for crimes while acting within the scope of their authority.

175.46(1)(g) (g) “Wisconsin law enforcement officer” means any person employed by this state or any political subdivision of this state, for the purpose of detecting and preventing crime and enforcing laws or ordinances and who is authorized to make arrests for violations of the laws or ordinances he or she is employed to enforce.

175.46(2) (2) Except as provided in sub. (8), a Wisconsin law enforcement agency may enter into a mutual aid agreement with a law enforcement agency of a physically adjacent state authorizing one or more of the following:

175.46(2)(a) (a) Law enforcement officers of the law enforcement agency of the physically adjacent state to act with some or all of the arrest and other police authority of a law enforcement officer of the Wisconsin law enforcement agency while within the Wisconsin law enforcement agency’s territorial jurisdiction and within a border county.

175.46(2)(b) (b) Law enforcement officers of the Wisconsin law enforcement agency to act with some or all of the arrest and other police authority of a law enforcement officer of the law enforcement agency of the physically adjacent state while within that agency’s territorial jurisdiction and within a border county.

175.46(3) (3) An agreement under this section shall be written and may be on an individual case-by-case basis or may be on a continuing basis until terminated by either agency.

175.46(4) (4) An agreement under this section may grant authority to an officer only to enforce laws and make arrests for violations of laws that are similar to the types of laws that he or she is authorized to enforce or make arrests for regarding violations of in his or her home state.

175.46(5) (5) 

175.46(5)(a) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), any agreement under this section shall provide that any Wisconsin law enforcement officer, acting under the agreement in another state, shall continue to be covered by his or her employing agency for purposes of worker’s compensation, unemployment insurance, benefits under ch. 40 and civil liability and any officer of another state acting in Wisconsin under the agreement shall continue to be covered for worker’s compensation, unemployment insurance, disability and other employee benefits and civil liability purposes by his or her employing agency in his or her home state. Any Wisconsin officer acting within an adjoining state, under the agreement, is considered while so acting to be in the ordinary course of his or her employment with his or her employing Wisconsin law enforcement agency.

175.46(5)(b) (b) An agreement under this section shall provide that any Wisconsin law enforcement officer, acting under the agreement in another state, is subject to any immunity from liability or limit on liability to the same extent as any officer of the other state. An agreement under this section shall provide that any law enforcement officer of another state, acting under the agreement in Wisconsin, is subject to any immunity from liability or limit on liability to the same extent as a Wisconsin law enforcement officer.

175.46(6) (6) No law enforcement officer of a physically adjacent state, acting under an agreement under this section, may be considered, for liability purposes, as an employee or agent of this state or any Wisconsin law enforcement agency for his or her actions within this state regardless of the supervision or control of the officer’s actions while within this state. The officer of the physically adjacent state is considered as continuing to be an employee of the agency employing him or her in the officer’s home state.

175.46(7) (7) Any agreement under this section entered into by a Wisconsin law enforcement agency may include any terms and conditions considered appropriate by that agency, except the agreement shall comply with this section.

175.46(8) (8) At least 30 days prior to entering into an agreement under sub. (2), a Wisconsin law enforcement agency shall submit a copy of the proposed agreement to the department of justice for the department’s review and comment. The department shall provide its comments to the Wisconsin law enforcement agency within 21 days after the department receives the proposed agreement. The Wisconsin law enforcement agency need not have the consent of the department to enter into the agreement. The Wisconsin law enforcement agency may revise the proposed agreement without having to resubmit the proposed agreement to the department.

175.46 History History: 1993 a. 49; 1993 a. 490 s. 154; Stats. 1993 s. 175.46; 1997 a. 39.

175.47 175.47 Review of deaths involving officers.

175.47(1) (1) In this section:

175.47(1)(a) (a) “Law enforcement agency” has the meaning given in s. 165.83 (1) (b).

175.47(1)(b) (b) “Law enforcement officer” has the meaning given in s. 165.85 (2) (c).

175.47(1)(c) (c) “Officer-involved death” means a death of an individual that results directly from an action or an omission of a law enforcement officer while the law enforcement officer is on duty or while the law enforcement officer is off duty but performing activities that are within the scope of his or her law enforcement duties.

175.47(2) (2) Each law enforcement agency shall have a written policy regarding the investigation of officer-involved deaths that involve a law enforcement officer employed by the law enforcement agency.

175.47(3) (3) 

175.47(3)(a) (a) Each policy under sub. (2) must require an investigation conducted by at least 2 investigators, one of whom is the lead investigator and neither of whom is employed by a law enforcement agency that employs a law enforcement officer involved in the officer-involved death.

175.47(3)(b) (b) If the officer-involved death being investigated is traffic-related, the policy under sub. (2) must require the investigation to use a crash reconstruction unit from a law enforcement agency that does not employ a law enforcement officer involved in the officer-involved death being investigated, except that a policy for a state law enforcement agency may allow an investigation involving a law enforcement officer employed by that state law enforcement agency to use a crash reconstruction unit from the same state law enforcement agency.

175.47(3)(c) (c) Each policy under sub. (2) may allow an internal investigation into the officer-involved death if the internal investigation does not interfere with the investigation conducted under par. (a).

175.47(4) (4) Compensation for participation in an investigation under sub. (3) (a) may be determined in a manner consistent with mutual aid agreements.

175.47(5) (5) 

175.47(5)(a) (a) The investigators conducting the investigation under sub. (3) (a) shall, in an expeditious manner, provide a complete report to the district attorney of the county in which the officer-involved death occurred.

175.47(5)(b) (b) If the district attorney determines there is no basis to prosecute the law enforcement officer involved in the officer-involved death, the investigators conducting the investigation under sub. (3) (a) shall release the report, except that the investigators shall, before releasing the report, delete any information that would not be subject to disclosure pursuant to a request under s. 19.35 (1) (a).

175.47 History History: 2013 a. 348; 2015 a. 55; 2021 a. 238 s. 45.

175.48 175.48 Law enforcement officer identification cards.

175.48(1) (1) In this section, “Wisconsin law enforcement agency” has the meaning given in s. 175.46 (1) (f).

175.48(2) (2) If a Wisconsin law enforcement agency issues photographic identification cards to its officers, it may not require an officer to relinquish his or her card when the officer separates from service with the Wisconsin law enforcement agency unless one of the following applies:

175.48(2)(a) (a) The officer may not lawfully possess a firearm under federal law.

175.48(2)(b) (b) The officer did not separate from service in good standing as a law enforcement officer with the agency.

175.48(2)(c) (c) The officer served as a law enforcement officer for an aggregate of less than 10 years. This paragraph does not apply if the officer, after completing any applicable probationary period of service with the agency, separated from service with the agency due to a service-connected disability, as determined by the agency.

175.48(2)(d) (d) Either of the following applies:

175.48(2)(d)1. 1. A qualified medical professional employed by the law enforcement agency has found the officer to be unqualified to be a law enforcement officer for reasons related to the officer’s mental health.

175.48(2)(d)2. 2. The officer has entered into an agreement with the law enforcement agency from which he or she is separating from service in which the officer acknowledges that he or she is not qualified to be a law enforcement officer for reasons related to the officer’s mental health and in which the officer declines the photographic identification for that reason.

175.48(3) (3) Unless sub. (2) (a), (b), (c), or (d) applies, if a Wisconsin law enforcement agency does not issue photographic identification cards to its officers, the law enforcement agency, or its successor agency, as defined in s. 175.49 (1) (i), shall issue such a card to an officer who separates from service with the law enforcement agency upon the separating officer’s request and at his or her expense.

175.48(4) (4) This section does not restrict the right of an officer who has separated from service to go armed with a firearm that is not concealed.

175.48 History History: 2011 a. 35; 2015 a. 68.

175.49 175.49 Former law enforcement officers seeking to carry concealed weapons.

175.49(1) (1) Definitions. In this section:

175.49(1)(a) (a) “Department” means the department of justice.

175.49(1)(b) (b) “Destructive device” has the meaning given in 18 USC 921 (a) (4).

175.49(1)(c) (c) “Firearm silencer” has the meaning given in s. 941.298 (1).

175.49(1)(d) (d) “Former federal law enforcement officer” means a person who separated from service as a law enforcement officer at a federal law enforcement agency and who resides in Wisconsin.

175.49(1)(e) (e) “Former law enforcement officer” means a person who separated from service as a law enforcement officer at a state or local law enforcement agency in Wisconsin.

175.49(1)(em) (em) “Former out-of-state law enforcement officer” means a person who separated from service as a law enforcement officer at a state or local law enforcement agency in a state other than Wisconsin and who resides in Wisconsin.

175.49(1)(f) (f) “Law enforcement agency” means an agency that consists of one or more persons employed by the federal government, including any agency described under 18 USC 926C (e) (2); a state, or a political subdivision of a state; the U.S. armed forces; or the national guard, that has as its purposes the prevention and detection of crime and the enforcement of laws or ordinances, and that is authorized to make arrests for crimes.

175.49(1)(g) (g) “Law enforcement officer” means a person who is employed by a law enforcement agency for the purpose of engaging in, or supervising others engaging in, the prevention, detection, investigation, or prosecution of, or the incarceration of any person for, any violation of law and who has statutory powers of arrest.

175.49(1)(h) (h) “Machine gun” has the meaning given in s. 941.25 (1).

175.49(1)(i) (i) “Successor agency” means a law enforcement agency that assumes the responsibilities and duties of another law enforcement agency.

175.49(2) (2) Certification of former law enforcement officers.

175.49(2)(a) (a) Upon the request of a former law enforcement officer and at the expense of the former law enforcement officer, a law enforcement agency that employed the former law enforcement officer, or its successor agency, shall, except as provided in par. (b), issue the former law enforcement officer a certification card as described in sub. (4) stating all of the following:

175.49(2)(a)1. 1. The type of firearm the former law enforcement officer is certified to carry, but no former law enforcement officer may be certified to carry a machine gun, a firearm silencer, or a destructive device.

175.49(2)(a)2. 2. The former law enforcement officer has been found by the state, or by a certified firearms instructor if such an instructor is qualified to conduct a firearms qualification test for active law enforcement officers in the state, to meet the standards for qualification in firearms training for active law enforcement officers to carry a firearm of the type under subd. 1., that are established by the state or, if the state does not establish standards, by the law enforcement agency from which the former law enforcement officer separated or its successor agency.

175.49(2)(a)3. 3. The date on which the finding under subd. 2. was made and an expiration date that is 12 months later than that date.