'It's real hard': Family of Milwaukee police officer gravely injured in crash devastated

Just two months ago, Milwaukee Police Officer James Nowak was out in the community, trying to raise funds to honor his former partner, Peter Jerving, who died while on-duty earlier this year.

Nowak was one of several officers from District Four – where Nowak and Jerving worked together for four and a half years – who waited on tables at a Milwaukee restaurant while in full police uniform. The proceeds were to help officers from the district visit Washington, D.C., in the spring to honor Jerving during National Police Week.

Tragically, Nowak is not expected to make that trip after suffering devastating injures in a car crash Sunday night in Oak Creek. Both the Oak Creek police and Nowak’s family do not expect him to survive.

Mayor Cavalier Johnson on Tuesday called the crash “a tragedy for the entire City of Milwaukee."

Nowak, 30, is a Milwaukee native who joined the Police Department in 2011, according to city records. He attended Hamilton High School and loves fishing, hunting and sports, according to his father-in-law, Dennis Bratel.

A GoFundMe page to help pay for medical bills and funeral costs raised nearly $50,000 as of Tuesday afternoon.

“He’s a great guy,” Bratel said. “He can meet you for the first time and be one of your friends.”

Bratel owns Gator’s Pub, at 601 E. Bolivar Ave., where his daughter, and Nowak’s wife, sometimes works. The family was together at the tavern Sunday for the Green Bay Packer game. Normally, Bratel said, Nowak would hang around and drive back with his wife to Oak Creek, where they live. But on Sunday, he left early.

The crash was reported at 10:31 p.m. on the 6600 block of South Pennsylvania Avenue. Oak Creek police said Nowak’s car crashed into a semi-truck as it attempted a U-turn on the road – which is four lanes wide and in a residential area.

Police said Tuesday an investigation is ongoing. No arrests have been announced.

“The road’s not that big there,” Bratel said. “It’s pitch-black dark. Jimmy probably looked up and at the last second, oh, this truck is there.”

When asked how the family is doing, Bratel said, “Not good, not good at all. It’s real hard.”

In the aftermath of Jerving’s death in February, photos of him with Nowak smiling wide while in and out of uniform were shared widely on social media and by news media.

Friends and family described the two as rambunctious and best friends. Nowak's wife, Julia Nowak, told the Journal Sentinel they loved working patrol and not spending all day behind a desk.

"They enjoyed going to all the calls," she said.

At Jerving's funeral, Capt. Bradley Schlei, who had recently taken command of District Four, affectionately called the two “clowns” for the laughter they would cause in the station after returning from patrol.

The two, however, were separated and training new officers in the early morning hours of Feb. 7, when Jerving was shot and killed while trying to apprehend a suspect on the city’s south side.

The loss of Jerving was “real hard in the beginning” for Nowak, Bratel said. “But he was strong. He was backed up by all his people in District Four.”

Nowak and his wife worked tirelessly in 2023 to honor their friend. Apart from James Nowak’s fundraising efforts, Julia Nowak also helped raise $27,000 to support Jerving’s family, according to her social media.

“The amount of love and support for my boy today is just absolutely breathtaking,” Nowak wrote on his Facebook the day Jerving was laid to rest. “It was definitely such an emotional roller coaster, but instead of anger it was happiness seeing everything you deserve. It still doesn’t seem real and I miss you like (expletive) crazy, but what a damn send off. This isn’t goodbye, just a see ya later.”

Contact Elliot Hughes at elliot.hughes@jrn.com or 414-704-8958. Follow him on Twitter @elliothughes12.