(Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
An extremist liberal activist and candidate for Kenosha Alderman, will stand trial this Monday for an incident that occurred on June 21, 2022. Joel P. Trudell, 44, of Kenosha, fought with police, resisted arrest, and was disorderly during a county board meeting. Trudell is often seen speaking at public meetings and a lot of people think of his behavior as being “off.” Trudell is so extreme, unpredictable, and deranged, that the local Democrat party, which itself is extreme, has endorsed his opponent, Kenny Harper, in the upcoming city council race.
During the June 21, 2022 Kenosha County Board meeting, Trudell was in rare form, according to sources familiar with him. Trudell was constantly interrupting other speakers during the citizens’ comment portion at the beginning of the meeting. He was warned several times by County Board Chairman Gabe Nudo to stop disrupting the meeting.
When I was speaking at the meeting, Trudell was heckling me. Again, Chairman Nudo asked Trudell to stop disrupting the meeting. Seen on this video is me asking the Chairman to address Trudell’s rambling while I was speaking. Police warned Trudell also. He can be seen blowing kisses to the two seasoned deputies present for security.
A few minutes later, Trudell takes the podium and rambles on for many minutes. He then begins to get disorderly and argue with the Chairman. He then suggested that a man who passed him from behind may have had a gun. He went off topic and started verbally attacking members of the board by name, questioning why they accepted campaign contributions, which is normal in elections. After many warnings, Nudo asks the deputies to remove Trudell from the podium. Nudo didn’t ask, nor did he have the legal authority to order that Trudell be arrested. He only has the authority to order Trudell be removed from the podium.
(Kenosha County Sheriff)
The decision to arrest Trudell was made by the deputies themselves after Trudell ignored lawful commands. Trudell said many times, “No sir” to deputies when they told him to remove himself from the podium. He then visibly and obviously resisted arrest. See three below videos of his resisting arrest, including his disorderly conduct when he screamed obscenities in a crowded room with minors.
Eventually, two on-duty deputies and two off-duty Kenosha Police Officers got Trudell into custody. He then began to scream “my wife is an attorney.” Trudell’s wife, Kate Trudell, is in fact an attorney in for Johnson Financial Group in Racine. She is the Vice President of wealth management.
(Facebook.com)
(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
After the arrest, KCE made contact with DA Graveley (D) and he told us that his office had no conflicts and his office would be making the million dollar decision – to charge or not to charge. In Wisconsin, a peace officer has the authority to make arrests and book individuals when probable cause exists. They cannot, however charge someone. Only duly elected DA’s or the State AG can do that.
The local Democratic party organized a petition campaign. Hours after the arrest, about a dozen or more local democrats reached out to DA Graveley and asked him to ignore Trudell’s crimes and not charge him. KCE was leaked many of these emails. District attorneys are supposed to make charging decisions based on the evidence and the law. They are prohibited from giving in to political pressure. We asked DA Graveley today if he would let pressure from fellow democrats influence his choice. He told us he couldn’t comment on a specific case. We then asked him to commit to generally keeping politics out of his charging decisions. He refused.
Here is a list of the emails we were leaked that DA Graveley received from Kenosha Democrats who asked him to drop all charges or something similar:
Lori Hawkins (Kenosha County Democratic Party Chairman)
Jodi Muerhoff (Kenosha County Democratic Party Secretary)
Tanya Kitts Lewinski (Kenosha Teachers Union President)
Holly Kangas (Kenosha Alderman)
Tenille Kangas-Isome-Fick-Thornton (Signed Kenosha YMCA Member Engagement Director) Daughter of Alderman Holly Kangas
Ronald Stevens (Former boys and Girls Club Director)
Laura Marran
Nina Ferraro (Liberal Activist)
Mary Manthei (2 Emails)
Sam Roochnik
Amanda Townsend
Kaylynn Steinmetz
Stacy Moore
Sue Benning
David Rinke
Marieta “Marie” Huff
Helen Breitenbach
Amy Feret
Amy Brothen
Toni Hanson
Graveley responded to most of the people saying “The Kenosha DA’s Office will continue to try to be neutral referees in these incredibly partisan, tribal times.”
(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
After telling KCE that he had no conflict and will personally handle the case, he then kicked the case to Walworth County DA Zeke Wiedenfeld (D) who charged Trudell. Graveley didn’t want any political pressure from the left so he refused to prosecute Trudell.
(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
Trudell is being represented by an activist attorney, William Sulton (D), who is the Wisconsin ACLU’s President. It is unknown if Sulton approached Trudell to take the case pro-bono.
(Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
Presiding over this case is Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Anthony Milisauskas. Milisauskas is universally seen as a very fair judge for defendants. Local defense attorneys are convinced Trudell will receive a fair trial.
Let’s take a look at the Wisconsin Jury Instructions for the elements the prosecutor will have to prove to get guilty verdicts:
Resisting an Officer
- The defendant resisted an officer. A deputy Sheriff is an peace officer. To resist an officer means to oppose the peace officer by force or threat of force. The resistance must be directed to the officer personally.
- The Deputy was doing an act in an official capacity.
- The Deputy was acting with lawful authority.
- The defendant knew that the deputy was an officer acting in an official capacity and with lawful authority and that the defendant knew (his) conduct would resist the officer.
The video footage and sworn testimony of the two deputies would be more than enough to satisfy a jury beyond a reasonable doubt as to these four elements.
Disorderly Conduct
- The defendant engaged in (violent) (abusive) (indecent) (profane) (boisterous)(unreasonably loud) (or otherwise disorderly) conduct.
- The conduct of the defendant, under the circumstances as they then existed, tended to cause or provoke a disturbance.
This one is easier to prove to a jury. There were at least 4 minors in the room. They were high school students that participate in the “Youth in Governance” program that teaches kids how government is supposed to work. Unfortunately for theses students, they saw a 43-year-old-man fight police and drop “f bombs.”
The video footage and sworn testimony of the two deputies would be more than enough to satisfy a jury beyond a reasonable doubt as to these three elements.
KCE has followed this story from the beginning, and we were at the board meeting in which Trudell was arrested. We requested permission from the judge to photograph the trial. Permission was granted. This wasn’t received well by Trudell and Sulton. Sulton added me to the witness list and asked the judge to order me out of the courtroom during the trial. I explained that calling me to the stand would be malpractice, as I witnessed Trudell tense his muscles, fight with police, and scream profanities. Sulton issued me a subpoena and had me served by a process server. Sulton signed his own subpoena. This was an illegal subpoena and just today, Sulton acknowledged as much, saying that “the subpoena is withdrawn.” Sulton told KCE today that he will ask the judge to prohibit KCE from covering the trial citing Wis. Stat. 906.15. This is part of the evidence code, and the term witness therefore refers to those who will be called to testify at trial. I am not under subpoena, and will not be testifying at trial. Sulton cannot demand to exclude individuals from the courtroom unless they are witnesses at trial. Any order excluding a person who will not be called as a witness, would violate the 6th Amendment’s guarantee of an open and public trial.
(Facebook.com)
(Facebook.com)
Between Trudell’s arrest and today, he has been bragging about his arrest, even posting a photo I took of his arrest as his profile photo on Facebook. He is excited and emboldened by the well-wishes of extremists that compliment his violence towards police.
Jury selection begins at 8:30 am Monday morning. The trial could conclude Tuesday or Wednesday.
Criminal Complaint
Police Report
(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
(File Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
48 Responses
Katie Herrmann could have done so much better.
They should have let him speak. He did nothing wrong, in the beginning. He only resisted when his rights were being taken away. If he were from the ” other side of the aisle” y’all would be applauding him.
This isn’t his first rodeo and probably won’t be the last. He does this crap all over town, making a scene and trying to cause drama and tension. He was recently escorted out of a school board meeting. This man has no restraint. He’s a lunatic and it is terrifying that he got a job working at Bullen. Parents beware. (he also supports kids reading porn in school)
He chose to waste his public comment time on a snide remark and it backfired. When you’re time is up, it’s up. He should have just kept his little speech going; instead, he wasted everyone else’s time.
Except he’ll never be on the other side because he’s a freaking violent lunatic and will always be on the far left so there’s no way to test your theory and certainly no way to believe it. Instead of diversion techniques to make false comparisons, maybe limit your statements to something even slightly truthful. No one violated his rights, “if it breaks the rules, it gets removed”.😝
This filthy pig has attacked citizens at the KUSD board meetings too-spewing expletives and perversion. How he thinks he can be an alderman is beyond me
The Kenosha Dems didn’t even endorse him for that seat!
He LOVES yer pic! He should pay you! And he WANTS to be charged —- why all the dumb emails??Oh yeah , they are Dems
He’s sending your foto to Rage Against the Machine —- pleez pleez pic me for your next album cover 🤣🤣🤣
It amazes me that fat stay at home, jobless clown gets any attention. Then I see his friends like berg, Roberts, Landry and other pieces of shit, and see the liberal left, deranged and support one another’s law breaking and unethical ways of life. Losers
He’s a long term sub for Kenosha unified
Who wants this clown teaching their kids? The cop bashing, low life? No thank you
Sounds like a great reason to homeschool!
If my kid had him I’d be emailing the principal. Wouldn’t take long to share some of his “finest social media moments”
This nut job will be on his best behavior starting Monday.
I hope he gets to spend some time locked up and get a dose of his own medicine. I would like to hear about him taking a beating and a pounding, that would make me smile.
He does take a pounding….his wife gets behind him with her strap on.
we should all go sit in the courtroom!
Email the prosecutor and send examples of his bad behavior in public and social media!
His wife is 3 attorneys!
*ate 3 attorneys. His wife looks like she ate 3 attorneys 😂
Well she looks to be the size of 3, so either way the comment works
Sergeant Hard is pleased about this https://www.facebook.com/100002181915744/posts/7336133673135957/?mibextid=rS40aB7S9Ucbxw6v
Whatta pathetic douche —- I didn’t think people posted “ I’m at the gym” bs on Fecesbook anymore
He’s trying to get customers for his jerkmate account.
Amanda Townsend owns Simply Spoken therapy. When we first found out that she was supporting a violent criminal, I pulled my child from her clinic.
Someone who believes that violence & public outbursts should go unpunished, has no business working with children.
It looks like husband and wife spend too much time over at KFC.
I’m tired of this. Give the people what they want….a Mathewson vs Trudell boxing match.
Even Screech, or Arnold Horschak could whip Joel.
Fat piece of garbage causing division
You missed a baby daddy for Tenille……. 😂😂😂😂
I don’t especially like Trudell. But could Nudo have handled it better?
Most situations, he could handle better. His treatment of Supervisor Thomas, when he was speaking on the racism committee, was just pure disrespect. Mr. Thomas really seems to care, and it’s clear he does his research and makes sure he has his facts in order- which is a rarity on the county board. Meanwhile, the Redheaded Devil is piping up with assembly bs every twelve seconds, and he doesn’t shush her…
Meetings ran better with Decker in that chair. Hopefully the board recognizes that when they appoint the next chair.
Typical libtarded behavior!
According to Andy berg’s facebook you cannot cover the story. And it must be true because Andy knows everything and posted it.
We all know nothing will happen to Joel, some left crybaby that knows him will be on the jury and will not say guilty. Then his fatass will walk around like he beat something. Dude needs to see a dentist.
He won’t win. His own party won’t endorse him, maybe he’s a liability like crazy Sue the disbarred attorney? It’s no wonder he doesn’t have a campaign page. Perhaps he fears he’d be trolled there like he trolls everyone else. Such a classy guy…
He and his wife should be more concerned about their fatty liver disease.
You’d think Johnson Bank would want to separate from these nutcases.
229? There is no “weight”. He’s 229. 329 is more like it
One rails against the allegedly oppressive system; the other works within the capitalist structure as a VP of wealth management? What a paradox!
You mean hypocrite.
The Hulk? That’s funny. The guy has zero muscle mass. He was so gassed from just holding onto the podium it looked like he was gonna pass out. I love the “I’m not gonna fight” comment by the elevator. Like ANYONE was worried about that. Dudes a complete joke.
Pro tip
Joel is useless and so is his support group especially that berg idiot
trying not to picture them doing it.
He got thrown to the ground like an over bloated carp.
Looks like ole tubby was afraid of a jury trial.
Pro tip:
He’s a useless fat slob who supports porn for children. Draw your own conclusions.