Madeline Island business owner to receive $300,000 in arrest lawsuit

Sept. 02--The owner of an iconic bar and concert venue on Madeline Island will receive a $300,000 payout in the police brutality lawsuit he filed last year.

Tom Nelson, owner of Tom's Burned Down Café, sued the town of La Pointe last May, alleging unnecessary force in his August 2014 arrest following a minor traffic collision. Nelson was Tasered multiple times inside his La Pointe home during the incident, which he alleged was the result of a decades-long family feud.

The town offered the payout in lieu of a trial that had been set for October. The judgment was formally entered in U.S. District Court in Madison this week after being accepted by Nelson.

"We feel this is a significant victory for us," said Glenn Stoddard, the Bayfield attorney representing Nelson. "We feel very good about the message it's sending, not only to the town and people that were part of the lawsuit, but more broadly, that this kind of behavior is not appropriate for police and other officials to engage in."

Nelson, 62, alleged that his arrest was unlawful and that Police Chief William Defoe used "unreasonable and excessive force." He claimed that the arrest came at the direction of his estranged cousin, then-Town Board Chairman Greg Nelson.

The suit named the town of La Pointe, Defoe, Greg Nelson and other town officials as defendants. Stoddard said he understands that the judgment will be covered by the town's general liability and law enforcement insurance policies.

An attorney representing the town and the officials could not be reached for comment Thursday afternoon.

According to the suit, the Nelsons are "first cousins who have been directly involved in an ongoing Nelson family feud for many years, and they have disliked and distrusted each other for nearly 20 years."

The Aug. 12, 2014, incident began when the two were involved in a traffic collision. Defoe, chief of the two-member department, was flagged down by Greg Nelson, who showed him damage to his logging truck and stated that he "wanted Tom Nelson arrested," the suit alleged.

Defoe drove to Tom Nelson's home and arrested him in an incident that was captured on body camera video, which was provided to the News Tribune.

The video shows the door opening and Defoe saying, "Hey, Tom." Nelson responds by pointing at Defoe and yelling, "Get off my property! Go get a warrant! Get out of here! Stay out!"

The video showed Nelson backing up slightly and Defoe reaching across the threshold in an attempt to handcuff Nelson. When Nelson further retreated, Defoe entered the home and deployed his Taser on Nelson.

Defoe deployed his Taser three times, according to the complaint, before Nelson fell down at the doorway and was handcuffed.

The lawsuit stated that the incident was witnessed by Nelson's wife and children, ages 3 and 7.

Nelson was taken to the Ashland County Jail and was charged with five offenses, including operating while intoxicated and hit-and-run. Nelson later accepted an agreement with the district attorney's office, pleading no contest to disorderly conduct and reckless driving charges.

The lawsuit alleged that Nelson's arrest violated the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unreasonable search and seizure, and was critical of the policies of Defoe, who took over as chief earlier that summer.

Stoddard said he felt confident that a message was sent through the lawsuit.

"I think this whole process has been a learning experience for the town and the officials involved," he said. "And the fact that the town offered this judgment at this point in the case indicates that everyone has learned quite a bit about what went wrong that day."

Greg Nelson has since resigned his position as town board chairman. Defoe remains chief of the two-member police department.

Tom Nelson is the longtime owner of Tom's Burned Down Café, a 40-foot trailer set among the ruins of a fire-ruined eatery on Madeline Island. The venue is a popular summer tourism eatery and music venue.

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