JANUARY 18, 1981 – Wendy O. Williams of The Plasmatics was arrested on stage at The Palms nightclub in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and was charged with “lewd and lascivious” behavior for the offense of simulating sex with a sledgehammer. Williams (May 28, 1949 – April 6, 1998) was a punk singer and performance artist known for sexually provocative performances, detonating stage equipment and automobiles, and wielding sledgehammer on stage to smash in TV sets and chainsaws to cut guitars in half. Police were apparently offended by William’s actions in the night club involving the sledge hammer.
When police came to arrest Williams, they felt it was necessary to pin her to the ground in order to control her. After her arrest she required medical attention and received multiple stitches above her eye as a result of her alleged resistance. The band’s manager Rod Swenson was also arrested for obstructing an officer when he attempted to protect Williams during her violent take down by police that night and was beaten by the police. Additional charges were brought against Swenson for initiating the scuffle. The case went to trial in June 1981. Williams’ arrest garnered significant national media attention. The prosecutor wanted to get out from under the intense scrutiny of the media and decided to try Williams and Swensen’s cases separately. He thought if he tried Swensen’s case first the media would lose interest. This strategy failed miserably. Rod Swensen’s trial began June 3, 1981 in the Circuit Court for Milwaukee County with Rod as the sole defendant. Plasmatics fans came from more than 2,000 miles away and it was standing room only in the court room.
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