POYNETTE – Records obtained by the Lodi Enterprise/Poynette Press reveal that Poynette police officer Sam Yanke received two citizen complaints before a controversial traffic stop last month led to his resignation.
During a Sept. 26 traffic stop that was captured on video, Yanke pulled a 37-year-old woman from the driver’s seat of her car and put his arms around her neck, reported Ryan Broege, editor of the Enterprise/Press. Disorderly conduct and resisting arrest charges against the driver, Faun Ward, were dismissed by the district attorney’s office earlier this month.
RELATED: Yanke’s incident report details officer’s side of scuffle
Newly obtained records detail two citizen complaints lodged against Yanke, the first on April 13, from a man who claimed Yanke followed him for nearly a mile after the two made eye contact on U.S. 51, before pulling him over for a failure to signal.
Another complaint detailed an early morning traffic stop on Sept. 3, during which Yanke allegedly pounded on a sleeping passenger’s chest to wake him. The driver said he then put his hands around his neck and shook him, saying if he didn’t wake up, he’d call 911.
