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Attorney Chris J. Trebatoski, age 44,
Milwaukee, stands convicted of a Class A
misdemeanor charge of knowingly giving false
information to a law enforcement officer.
That charge arose from a burglary Trebatoski
reported in the early morning hours of
August 25, 2003. Prior to the reported
burglary, Trebatoski had gone to the
Potawatomi Bingo Casino for the purpose of
gambling. While at the casino, Trebatoski
made ten attempts to use his ATM and credit
cards to withdraw cash to gamble, but for
various reasons none of those attempts was
successful. Trebatoski returned home and
reported struggling with a burglar, who
eventually ran away. Leaving his wallet and
credit cards on a table where he had dropped
them before confronting the burglar,
Trebatoski then drove to the Whitefish Bay
Police Department to report the burglary.
He was transported to the hospital for
treatment of minor injuries. Upon returning
to the police station, Trebatoski was
advised by the police to check with his
credit card company regarding possible use
of his cards. He was later informed that
police officers had found Trebatoski’s
wallet and credit/ATM cards in a dumpster
one-half block from Trebatoski’s home.
Upon checking with his credit card
company, Trebatoski was told by the credit
card company that someone had made several
unsuccessful attempts to use his credit/ATM
cards at the casino at 2:27 A.M., which
would have been after his return home. He
reported this to the police. Neither he nor
the police knew, at the time, that the
credit card company’s information was based
on Eastern Standard Time. Trebatoski was
asked whether he had personally used a
credit/ATM card during his visit to the
casino and he initially denied that he had.
Later he told police that he had just
recalled that he did make an attempt to use
a credit card at the casino, but maintained
that the other attempts to use the cards
were fraudulent. The Whitefish Bay Police
investigated the reported burglary and what
they believed might have been the cloning of
Trebatoski’s ATM/credit cards. After they
subpoenaed surveillance camera videos of the
casino ATM machines, however, they
discovered that it was Trebatoski himself
who had made each of the attempted
withdrawals. None of his attempts to use
the card had been successful.
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Almost a month after the burglary was first
reported, the police contacted Trebatoski
and asked if he would sign affidavits to the
effect that he was not the one who had used
the cards. On September 21, 2003,
therefore, Trebatoski signed six affidavits
with regard to six separate transactions.
Each affidavit read, in part:
I, Chris J. Trebatoski, . . . being duly
sworn upon oath, do hereby state that I did
not make, or authorize anyone else to make,
the following transaction.
On October 2, 2003, the Whitefish Bay
police showed the surveillance tapes to
Trebatoski, and Trebatoski acknowledged that
he had intentionally misled the police. He
stated that he did so because he was
embarrassed about his attempts to gamble and
did not want his wife to know about his
activity at the casino. Trebatoski
subsequently pled no contest to one count of
obstructing an officer, contrary to sec.
946.41(1), Stats.
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By engaging in criminal conduct that
reflects adversely on his honesty,
trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in
other respects, Atty. Trebatoski violated
SCR 20:8.4(b). By signing six affidavits
that averred that he had not made credit
card/ATM transactions that he had in fact
attempted to make, Atty. Trebatoski engaged
in conduct involving misrepresentation,
contrary to SCR 20:8.4(c).
For the above misconduct, and in
accordance with SCR 21.09(2), Attorney Chris
J. Trebatoski is hereby publicly reprimanded.
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