Fond du Lac Co. hate crime: What we know
FOND DU LAC - Two weeks after Phillip Thiessen was laid to rest, the community still looks for answers about the July 3 crash that took his life.
Thiessen, 55, had retired to Fond du Lac, where he had graduated from L.P. Goodrich High School in 1983.
He had served in the U.S. Marine Corps, and had been a police officer in Fairfax, Virginia, for 26 years before becoming a special agent with the Wisconsin Department of Justice for almost two years.
“Phillip was a man of many interests and was a self-described ‘sports junkie,’” his obituary read. “He enjoyed cheering on the Green Bay Packers, the Washington Capitals and Jordan Spieth in the PGA.”
During retirement, Thiessen believed in giving back to his community and volunteered at the Fondy Food Pantry.
What we know
Police responded around 6:50 p.m. July 3 to a crash between a motorcycle and pickup truck on Winnebago Drive in the town of Taycheedah.
The driver of the motorcycle, Thiessen,
was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver of the pickup truck, 27year-old Daniel Navarro, was unhurt.
Navarro had been driving east in his father’s pickup truck to charge the battery when he crossed the center line and hit Thiessen, who was heading west, according to the criminal complaint.
Navarro told authorities the crash was intentional, and that he targeted Thiessen because he was driving a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and Navarro believed he was white.
Navarro is charged with firstdegree intentional homicide and firstdegree recklessly endangering safety — both as hate crimes and both involving the use of a dangerous weapon.
July 3 was hot and sunny. The crash took place on dry pavement, on a straight and flat segment of road, with no apparent visual obstructions.
Thiessen was not wearing a helmet.
The posted speed limit of the road is 35 mph.
Navarro was sober at the time of the crash.
The police found no indication Navarro knew Thiessen or targeted him because of his background in law enforcement.
Navarro, who is Latino, said during interviews with detectives that he’d dealt with racism from white coworkers and neighbors.
The investigation is ongoing. Police are conducting a crash reconstruction and seeking security footage and other information that might help the investigation.
Navarro is being held in Fond du Lac County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond.
Navarro waived his preliminary hearing July 17. He’s due back in Fond du Lac County Circuit Court Aug. 12 to be arraigned.
If convicted of first-degree intentional homicide, Navarro could face life in prison.
Family members, police and a prosecutor raised concerns about Navarro’s mental health months before the incident but there’s no public record he received any mental health care.
Navarro had been charged with disorderly conduct in connection with a domestic violence incident in late August 2019, but the court dismissed the charges. The judge had ordered a psychological evaluation of Navarro but there’s no record it was done.
In late October, a public defender notified the judge and the prosecutor that Navarro had been in jail 69 days without a trial; the maximum sentence for disorderly conduct is 90 days. On Nov. 4, in response to a motion from the prosecutor, the judge dismissed the charge, freed Navarro and canceled his order for a competency exam.
What we don’t know
How long Navarro and his family have lived in Fond du Lac.
Whether Navarro grew up in or attended school in Fond du Lac. What work Navarro did for a living. The speeds of either vehicle at the time of the crash.
Whether authorities have ruled out mechanical failure contributing to the crash.
Doug Schneider contributed to this story.