Sibling Spat Leads to Broken Electronics, Police Say

A sibling spat turned a bit more serious, police say, when a 21-year-old Sturtevant man reportedly broke his sister’s laptop in half after he got upset because she wouldn’t pay for his prescription pills.

Michael J. Nelson was charged in Racine County Circuit Court Monday with one count of criminal damage to property and one count of disorderly conduct. If convicted, he faces up to one year in prison and $11,000 in fines.

According to the criminal complaint, at 10:30 p.m. Sunday, Racine police officers were called to an apartment in the 2800 block of Crossridge Drive for a noise complaint. When they arrived, they said they could hear Nelson shouting while they were standing in the hallway. Officers confronted Nelson and he immediately shouted he didn’t care if he went to jail.

Nelson’s sister then talked to police, telling officers her brother came to her apartment intoxicated and belligerent because he wanted her to pay for his prescription pills. When she refused, he became more upset and broke her laptop in half, broke her cell phone in several pieces and also smashed a digital camera.

The woman said she became scared so she went to a neighbor’s apartment and they contacted police.

Nelson is currently being held in Racine County Jail on a $400 signature bond while awaiting trial.