Ojibwe Man Wins $1.25 Million After Bloody Wisconsin Arrest Caught on Dashcam

A Parking Lot Incident That Sparked a Major Civil Rights Case

The Oneida County Sheriff's Department will pay a Lac du Flambeau tribal member $1.25 million to settle his civil rights lawsuit following a 2024 arrest that left the man bloodied and needing 13 stitches. The settlement, reached this week, brings an end to a case that drew attention far beyond northern Wisconsin — touching on deep, unresolved tensions between law enforcement and Indigenous communities in the region.

Thomas Maulson, 45, alleges that Sheriff's Deputy Will Taege tripped him while he was handcuffed in a Walmart parking lot in Rhinelander on March 30, 2024, following a road rage incident Maulson was involved in. Maulson received 13 stitches above his right eye and said he still has medical issues affecting his vision and orientation. The incident was captured on police dashcam, and the footage showed Maulson — already restrained — hitting the pavement hard.

A Family Name Tied to Decades of Tribal Struggle

Maulson believes violence was used in his arrest because he is a member of the Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe Nation, and his uncle of the same name had led tribal members during the well-known "Walleye Wars" of the 1980s and '90s. His uncle, Tom Maulson, is an activist and former politician of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa who served as a tribal judge, council member, and president, and was a key figure in the Wisconsin Walleye War.

Thomas Maulson highlighted pervasive animosity against tribal members in the Northwoods region, noting that many avoid displaying tribal license plates to evade potential harassment by law enforcement. Some incidents of harassment against tribal spearers still occur every season in the area. For the Maulson family, this arrest wasn't just a personal injury — it felt like a continuation of a conflict that has simmered for generations.

The County Denies Wrongdoing, but the Insurance Pays

Captain Tyler Young of the Oneida County Sheriff's Department reviewed the incident and told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Deputy Taege acted appropriately and that Maulson's legs were crossed and he tripped himself. In 2024, a Sheriff's Department captain said the treatment of Maulson in the parking lot was well within bounds and that being a member of the Lac du Flambeau tribe was irrelevant. He said at the time he was disappointed that Maulson raised the issue of targeting and being Indigenous, and said he feared it would foster unnecessary divisiveness.

In Maulson's civil lawsuit, the Sheriff's Department denied wrongdoing, but the insurance company settled and Maulson will be paid $1.25 million. The lawsuit was settled just days before the case was scheduled for a jury trial. His attorney, Dixon R. Ganhnz of LawtonCates law firm, said: "Mr. Maulson was the victim of a road rage incident, and rather than treat him as such, he was arrested and badly injured." He added that all criminal charges were dismissed before the firm's involvement, and that "the combination of the civil settlement and the dismissal of the charges provides some measure of justice for Mr. Maulson and his family."

What This Settlement Signals Going Forward

A $1.25 million payout — reached on the courthouse steps, so to speak — sends a message that civil rights claims tied to the treatment of Indigenous people in police custody carry real legal weight. Whether or not the county admitted fault, the financial outcome speaks loudly. Cases like this often hinge on dashcam footage, and here, the video was central to Maulson's ability to press his claims at all.

The Oneida County Sheriff's Department rejected the allegations of racial targeting, with a captain stating that the deputy's conduct remained within policy guidelines and bore no connection to Maulson's tribal membership. Media coverage of the claims underscored enduring frictions between local authorities and Ojibwe communities in northern Wisconsin. As tribal communities continue navigating those frictions — in courtrooms, at boat landings, and on everyday roads — this settlement may offer a rare, concrete example of accountability prevailing over denial.