Car Collection Scheme Leads To Probation For Ex-City Attorney Spencer

Tearman Spencer (left) exits a courtroom in Feb. 2025. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

Former Milwaukee City Attorney Tearman Spencer will serve 18 months on probation and pay a $7,000 fine after being convicted of felony misconduct in office.

A jury found Spencer guilty in July of using his public position for personal benefit by directing a subordinate to prepare legal research that Spencer then provided to the owner of a warehouse where he stored his private car collection. Prosecutors said Spencer used the memo in an effort to avoid city inspection requirements, violations and potentially thousands of dollars in fees.

Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Jorge Fragoso on Thursday imposed a three-month sentence at the Community Reintegration Center but stayed the jail term and instead placed Spencer on probation for 18 months.

As conditions of probation, Spencer must complete 100 hours of community service and a cognitive behavioral intervention program. He also must pay a $7,000 fine along with mandatory court costs and other fees before the end of his probation.

Spencer, 69, served as Milwaukee city attorney from 2020 until April 2024, when he lost his reelection bid to Evan Goyke. He was charged in October 2024.

The felony misconduct charge carried a maximum penalty of three-and-a-half years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

The jury acquitted Spencer of a separate misdemeanor charge of obstructing an officer.

Spencer appeared at Thursday’s sentencing hearing with attorney William Sulton. Assistant District Attorney Nate Kristian McClure appeared for the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, while Nicolas J. Heitman, who previously prosecuted the case before taking a position with the Wisconsin Department of Justice, also appeared.

The sentencing hearing had originally been scheduled for Sept. 11, but was moved to Sept. 10 to accommodate a hearing involving separate criminal charges Spencer faces in Waukesha County.

Legal Troubles Continue

Thursday’s sentence does not end Spencer’s criminal cases.

He faces two pending Waukesha County cases stemming from an allegedly improper real estate transaction and his subsequent contact with a potential witness.

In the underlying case, prosecutors allege Spencer and real estate agent Kennard Wragg improperly acquired a house from an estate for $8,000, made repairs, paid delinquent taxes and attempted to sell the property for nearly $250,000.

Spencer was charged in October 2025 with four felonies: conspiracy to receive stolen property, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit criminal slander of title and conspiracy to falsely exercise the function of a public office. The case also includes allegations that Spencer acted as a notary after his commission had been revoked.

Spencer has maintained his innocence. Sulton has previously argued that the case was brought because Spencer rejected a plea deal in the Milwaukee misconduct case.

Spencer also faces a felony bail-jumping charge for allegedly contacting probate attorney Bettie Rodgers, a potential witness in the real estate case. Prosecutors have characterized the contact as a “veiled bribe,” alleging Spencer offered to direct legal work to Rodgers. Spencer’s defense has denied that a crime occurred.

The Waukesha cases grew out of evidence uncovered during investigations into Spencer’s conduct as Milwaukee city attorney.

Car Collection Led To Conviction

The misconduct case centered on a since-demolished building on N. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive where Spencer stored approximately a dozen vehicles.

Prosecutors alleged that Spencer used the City Attorney’s Office to help himself and building owner Mohammad Arif Ghaffar avoid Department of Neighborhood Services inspections, violations and thousands of dollars in potential fees.

After DNS inspectors raised questions about the property’s use and whether it needed an occupancy permit, Spencer directed subordinates to research the issue without disclosing his personal interest, according to prosecutors. As a city department, DNS was Spencer’s client.

An assistant city attorney subsequently prepared a memo suggesting that a building primarily used for vehicle storage might not qualify as vacant or be subject to certain registration requirements.

Prosecutors said Spencer forwarded the memo from his city email account to his personal account and then sent it to Ghaffar, who presented it to DNS inspectors while challenging the department’s enforcement effort.

The prosecution argued Spencer had effectively deployed the City Attorney’s Office against another city department — even though both were his clients — in an effort to protect his personal vehicle storage arrangement.

Following the July verdict, Sulton said the defense disagreed with the jury’s conclusion.

“After five days in court, the jury found that Tearman Spencer did not provide false information to investigators,” Sulton previously said of the misdemeanor acquittal. “We stand by the fact that requesting legal research does not constitute misconduct in office, and we fundamentally disagree with the jury’s conclusion on that point.”

Spencer could appeal the conviction and sentence.