OAK CREEK — A memorial honoring the life of an off-duty Milwaukee Police Officer killed in a drunk driving crash in December was removed earlier this week after neighborhood complaints.
Officer Jimmy Nowak died after a crash on December 3 near Pennsylvania Avenue and Oak Street. He later died at the hospital and a memorial quickly went up near the intersection.
It had originally sat on the southeast corner of the intersection. It was on an island on the frontage road, allowing friends and family an easier place to park and pay their respects. Earlier this week, the South Milwaukee Police Department removed the memorial, citing complaints from neighbors.
“It is a tragic event for the family and the law enforcement community but citizens from the neighborhood complained about the memorial on the public right of way so we had to remove it,” Chief William Jessup of the South Milwaukee Police Department said in a statement.
Nowak’s widow, Julia, posted about her issues in getting information about the removal of the memorial. She says the officers she spoke to were rude to her and dismissive when she looked for more information.
She called the memorial, “really the only ‘living’ piece of Jimmy we have left that people can physically visit, grieve and pray at.”
Julia felt disrespected by the department’s lack of empathy for her situation. The South Milwaukee Police Department removed the memorial and kept the contents for safekeeping. Julia has since picked up those belongings and created a new memorial on the northwest corner of the intersection, which is technically Oak Creek.
“I am not posting for sympathy but I cannot begin to describe what living in hell feels like, and I sincerely hope no one ever has to go through something like this. I have since packed Jimmy’s memorial in my car and it will be moved to the opposite side of the road in the City of Oak Creek so everyone can continue to remember my amazing husband for the outstanding man he was.”
TMJ4 News spoke to two neighbors who didn’t wish to be identified about why they complained about the memorial.
“I understand why people were wanting to show respect with a memorial,” one neighbor said. “The only problem is, it had been there for quite a few months. People were leaving things and it became a bit of a hazard as far as traffic goes.”
This neighbor didn’t want his views to be taken as disrespect. He values police officers and the difficulties they face.
“I do have a lot of respect for him as a police officer, but our concern was safety for the community,” he said. “The time for the memorial had passed and it was probably time for it to be taken down.”
Another neighbor says the circumstances around Nowak’s death are why she wanted it removed.
Nowak’s blood alcohol level at the time of the crash was three times the legal limit. The neighbor says the memorial had been a place people would leave alcohol bottles and she didn’t like the message that sent.
However, there are neighbors who fully support a memorial in Nowak’s honor.
“It doesn’t matter what happened, or how he died,” Renee Wotnoske said. “It’s a life that’s lost and we need to honor that.”
Renee and her husband Jack were walking along Pennsylvania Avenue Wednesday afternoon. They both took a second to reflect on Jimmy’s service to the Milwaukee community as an officer. It’s moments like these that they want the memorial to remain.
“It’s a tough job,” Jack said. “Whatever happened, happened. It’s a shame but I don’t think it’s any problem at all for [the memorial] to be here and remember him.”
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