Three fmr. Portage PD employees’ termination letters shed more light on why they were fired

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - We now know the specific reasons why three former Portage Police Department employees were fired earlier this month, Probationary Officers Craig Crary and Benjamin Oetzman, along with Administrative Assistant Casey Crary.

An open records request filed by NBC15 Investigates turned up the three’s official termination letters after they were arrested back on September 11 in connection to a social media post that allegedly shows them making inappropriate and potentially threatening comments about someone who filed a temporary restraining order against them.

Portage Police Chief Keith Klafke terminated all three people and he noted “clear violations of our policy and procedures were evident.”

“Further information and the video were obtained which spoke for itself and does not meet our ethical standards and detracts from this department’s public trust and our mission,” Klafke said.

We now know exactly which policies Klafke was referring to.

The termination letters show Ben Oetzman and Craig Crary violated the department’s conformance of law section, specifically the chapters called unbecoming conduct and immoral conduct. Casey Crary violated the social media chapter under the conformance of law section.

The records also show Ben Oetzman and Craig Crary were only employed with the department for about two months before they were fired. Casey Crary had been with the department since 2020.

NBC15 Investigates has reached out to the Dodge County District Attorney to see if she has made a charging decision. We have yet to hear back.

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