Racine Co Sheriff’s investigator probed for sexual abuse claims

A deputy is on leave and being investigated after his wife got a restraining order and accused him of sexually abusing her for more than a decade.

By Annie Pulley, THE BADGER PROJECT

“I am in fear for my safety.” 

Those words were written by the wife of Jonathan Bechman. Her husband is an investigator for the Racine County Sheriff’s Office. In January, she filed for a restraining order alleging he has abused her and forced her to have sex with other men since 2008. 

The court granted her a domestic abuse injunction in February. It extends until February 2030. 

Now Bechman is the subject of a criminal investigation.

He “has been physically and sexually abusing me and posting sexual advertisements, photographs and videos of me online,” his wife wrote in her January petition for a restraining order that she filed in Kenosha County. “I believe he has the ability, knowledge and means to locate me and cause me serious harm.”

The Badger Project does not publish the names of victims of sexual assault.

Bechman, 48, has worked for the Racine County Sheriff’s Office since 2011 and has been on administrative leave since Jan. 9, said Lt. Michael Luell, the spokesperson for the sheriff’s office. Bechman was placed on leave “as soon as practical after receiving the initial complaint,” Luell continued.

Bechman did not respond to messages seeking comment and hung up on a reporter when he was reached by phone.

In her petition for a restraining order, Bechman’s wife detailed a five-page history of sexual coercion and abuse. She said Bechman would arrange for her to have sex with other men and become verbally and physically abusive when she expressed her discomfort.

One excerpt details an incident from last November where Bechman became upset with her when they didn’t engage in sexual activity with other men for their wedding anniversary. 

“Following this,” she wrote, “Jon physically assaulted me.”

While she was on their bed, Bechman knelt on her neck and restricted her breathing, she wrote. On another occasion, in December 2025, she said Bechman was driving and became upset after he showed her pornographic images on his cellphone and asked what she thought. She recalled saying, “It’s fine.” But he became angry anyway.

“I remained quiet and did not fight with him,” she wrote. “I have learned this only makes the violence worse.”

She said he hit her “as hard as he could” about 20 times in the chest, shoulder and upper body.

She alleged that Bechman has assaulted her about five times per year for more than a decade. He also posted sensitive images and videos of her online without her consent, she claimed. 

“If I participate in these encounters and then cry in the shower afterward or if I express that I don’t want to live this way and want to live for the Lord instead,” she wrote, “Jon becomes progressively more angry over several days. This progression typically ends with him hitting me.”

She said she’s fearful because he has extensive law enforcement training, access to weapons and connections throughout Racine County.

Jeffrey Brandt with the Mount Pleasant Police Department confirmed his agency is leading the criminal investigation. The department denied The Badger Project’s request for records because the case is ongoing.

“The Sheriff’s Office is allowing the criminal investigation to take precedent (sic) while conducting its own administrative investigation into the matter,” Luell said. 

No criminal charges have been posted yet, but Racine County District Attorney Patricia Hansen told The Badger Project in an email that a Milwaukee County special prosecutor has been assigned to the case.

The Badger Project is an independent, reader-supported news org in Wisconsin.