Aug. 23, 2022 9:20p
(WGTD)---A 27-year-old Kenosha Police officer still working under probationary status has been fired and criminally charged for allegedly having sexual contact with a woman who was in custody.
Joshua Sylvester was charged Tuesday with 2nd Degree Sexual Assault by a Law Enforcement Officer and Misconduct in Public Office. Bond was set in Kenosha Court at $15,000, and he was booked into the Racine County Jail.
According to a statement from Police Chief Eric Larsen, Sylvester was fired for violating department policies and procedures. He'd been on the force for just over 12 months.
According to the criminal complaint, Sylvester was standing guard in a hospital emergency room over a 34-year-old woman dressed in nothing but a hospital gown. The woman had been taken to the hospital following a drunk driving crash.
Even though Sylvester had at times turned off the recording function of his body cam, investigators were somehow able to obtain "full video footage" of the entire contact which lasted some two hours.
The video, according to the complaint, shows Sylvester engaging in conversation with the woman, who at times was laughing, and at one point had pulled up her gown above her waist. That's when the sexual contact allegedly occurred. The complaint also says that Sylvester transferred from her phone to his nude photos of the woman.
The woman was eventually taken to jail and released the next day. She initially was planning on keeping quiet about what had allegedly happened, but was convinced by a friend to report the incident. The complaint quotes the woman as saying she knew at the time that what was happening was wrong, but that she was highly intoxicated.
Sylvester, when confronted, initially denied any wrongdoing, but then slid back parts of the denial when confronted with physical evidence.
-0-