Posted Tuesday, September 25, 2012 --- 5:55 a.m.
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- U.S. Attorney James Santelle says he is considering ordering a federal investigation into the death of a man who died in Milwaukee police custody.
Santelle also is considering authorizing an investigation into a possible pattern of civil rights abuses by the Milwaukee Police Department.
The Milwaukee County medical examiner's office has changed its ruling in the case of Derek Williams from natural death to homicide. Williams died in police custody in July 2011.
The decision came after the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel alerted an assistant medical examiner to newly released records -- including a video of a suffocating Williams pleading for help from the back of a squad car.
Wisconsin Public Radio reports Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm said Monday he'll ask an independent prosecutor to conduct an inquest into Williams' death.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
