Judge Dismisses Civil Rights Suit In Death of Joel Acevedo
Federal ruling finds former officer Michael Mattioli and City of Milwaukee owe no damages to Acevedo’s family.
Member of Joel Acevedo’s family speak to protestors gathered by the house of Michael Mattioli, the Milwaukee police officer facing charges in Acevedo’s death, on Friday, May 29. Madeline Fox/WPR
A civil rights lawsuit against a former Milwaukee police officer involved in the 2020 death of Joel Acevedo was dismissed by a federal judge.
Judge Brett Ludwig signed the order March 6, ruling that neither the officer, Michael Mattioli, nor the city of Milwaukee owes damages to Acevedo’s family. The decision comes after Mattioli was previously found not guilty of homicide in the incident.
Lawyers representing Acevedo’s estate and his brother did not immediately respond to WPR’s request for comment.
The lawsuit stems from an altercation that took place at Mattioli’s home in the early morning of April 19, 2020.
The off-duty Milwaukee officer woke up and found Acevedo, his friend, digging through his pants pockets, Mattioli told Milwaukee County District Attorney Investigator David Dalland. It was after a night of drinking. The confrontation that followed led to Mattioli putting Acevedo in a rear-naked chokehold for more than 11 minutes.
Acevedo died of his injuries nearly five days later. He was 25 years old.
The next month Mattioli was charged with first-degree reckless homicide. A jury found him not guilty in 2023.
At the time, Mattioli said he was not trying to “hurt the guy or kill the guy. … He was trying to ‘arrest’ the guy,” according to court documents.
Mattioli’s lawyers did not immediately respond to WPR’s request for a comment.
The suit argued that Mattioli “used deadly force” despite knowing Acevedo “did not present as a serious or deadly threat.” The document claimed the actions violated Acevedo’s civil rights.
His family was seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages, equitable relief, attorney costs and discretionary relief.
Lawsuit dismissed in choking death involving former Milwaukee police officer was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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More about the Case of Officer Michael Mattioli
- Judge Dismisses Civil Rights Suit In Death of Joel Acevedo - Steph Conquest-Ware - Mar 13th, 2026
- Statement on verdict in Joel Acevedo homicide trial - Milwaukee Common Council - Nov 14th, 2023
- Judge Rules Acevedo Video Can Be Released - Corrinne Hess - May 5th, 2021
- Body Cameras Key To Charges Against Police - Corrinne Hess - May 4th, 2021
- Acevedo Family Pledges Push For Justice - Isiah Holmes - Dec 29th, 2020
- Officer Accused Of Reckless Homicide Resigns - Corrinne Hess - Sep 9th, 2020
- Mayor Tom Barrett released the following statement: - Tom Barrett - Sep 8th, 2020
- Joel Acevedo deserves justice - JoCasta Zamarripa - Sep 3rd, 2020
- Milwaukee Police Department Decides to Move Forward with the Internal Investigation of the Off-Duty Incident Involving Officer Michael Mattioli - Milwaukee Police Department - Sep 2nd, 2020
- Can Police Be Defunded? - Allison Dikanovic - Jul 26th, 2020
Read more about Case of Officer Michael Mattioli here
