Town of Lisbon - Former Police Sgt. Gaetano "Tom" Alioto has charged town officials with harassment, whistle blowing retaliation, conspiracy, discrimination, and defamation in a Waukesha County Circuit Court law suit stemming from Alioto's feuds with former Police Chief Terry Martorano.
The law suit seeks unspecified damages although in a notice filed with the town in April Alioto's lawyer said he would seek $5 million in damages for injury to Alioto's reputation and loss of past and future wages.
The law suit filed last week details a series of events between April 2006 and December 2007 when Martorano and other town officials allegedly harassed Alioto and leveled false charges against him with the Waukesha County District Attorney's office.
Alioto accussed Martorano of retaliating against him because in April of 2006 Alioto told Town Board members that Martorano was working on part time security jobs during the same hours he was collecting wages as the Town's first full time police chief.
As a result of Alioto's accusations, the Town Board launched an investigation into Martorano's conduct.
Following the investigation, Martorano leveled charges against Alioto and some Town Board members with former Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher.
One Town Board member resigned in the wake of Bucher's investigation. The four other board members were defeated in elections in 2007 and 2008.
A Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge exonerated Alioto of the felony misconduct filed against him by a special prosecutor who was appointed after Bucher left office.