March 9, 2012 at 8:56 p.m.
Special prosecutor files charges against Minocqua cop
According to a criminal complaint filed March 7, officer Mark T. Ferencevich's live-in girlfriend called police at approximately 3:40 a.m. Feb. 18 after Ferencevich allegedly began continuously cocking the slide on a loaded handgun while lying in bed. The girlfriend told police Ferencevich's behavior scared her so much she left the room, locked herself in her children's bedroom and called for help.
According to the complaint, when officers from the Minocqua Police Department arrived on scene, they found Ferencevich walking down the stairs holding a gun. Ferencevich told the officers he grabbed his gun because he heard his dog bark and thought someone was trying to get in the house. After being advised that police were responding to a complaint from his girlfriend, Ferencevich claimed he had done nothing wrong.
"Mark said that nothing was going on, that they weren't arguing or anything and that they hadn't even talked since he got home," a police report attached to the complaint states. "Mark said that he had not been doing anything with his gun at all, that he was just sleeping."
Ferencevich, 42, explained that he went alone to a bar in Rhinelander that night and after he came home made himself a sandwich and went to bed.
"Mark made the comment that he never pointed the gun at anyone or anything," the report states.
During the conversation, the officers noted slurred speech and a strong odor of intoxicants coming from Ferencevich.
When asked about his drinking that evening, Ferencevich admitted to having six or seven beers at the bar in Rhinelander and a vodka lemonade after he returned home. At 5:07 a.m. a preliminary breath test registered a reading of .16, according to the police report.
After he was arrested, Ferencevich told officers, "It's OK. That's what lawyers are for to clear up messes like this one," the report states.
Police interviewed Ferencevich's girlfriend at the residence.
According to the complaint, she told police she and Ferencevich had been having issues for a few weeks and he has told her in the past, "If I wanted to kill ya I'd just shoot ya."
"(The girlfriend) said that she is scared because Mark is just a 'ticking time bomb.' She said that having all of the guns in the house scares her because the kids could get into them and because Mark keeps everything in and you don't know when he might explode," the complaint states.
The girlfriend is described in the complaint as being "very emotional" throughout the conversation.
According to court records, Ferencevich appeared in Oneida County Circuit Court Feb. 20 for a bail hearing. Cash bond was set at $150 and an initial appearance was scheduled for March 19. Ferencevich is prohibited from possessing weapons or consuming intoxicants while on bond.
Oneida County District Attorney Mike Bloom has recused himself from the case. Lincoln County District Attorney Don Dunphy has been assigned the matter as a special prosecutor.
Ferencevich, who faces a maximum sentence of 27 months in prison if convicted of all three misdemeanors, has been placed on administrative leave until the investigation is complete.
He has been employed at the Minocqua Police Department since 2010 and serves as a liaison officer.
Heather Schaefer may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.