Madison protests: Intersection clears after overnight unrest, fires

MADISON, Wis. - Overnight unrest prompted Madison police to respond to the intersection of Baldwin and Williamson, according to the Madison Police Department. Protesters set a total of five fires in the street. 

Overnight unrest, street fires

What we know:

Demonstrations took place all day Tuesday after city crews cleared a protest encampment that formed at the intersection of Baldwin and Williamson, where police shot and killed Corey Ruiz nearly two weeks prior.

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The Madison Police Department said protesters occupied Baldwin Street with tents, telling officers that the situation was "about to get bad," at around 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Madison Police Chief John Patterson said a group of between 30 and 40 people yelled profanity and insults at officers for hours on Tuesday.

"Our police officers, frankly, for hours stood there and took profanity, insults, yelling, really challenging moments," he said. "I am very proud of how they handled the situation. I think they maintained professionalism. They maintained discretion, and they, frankly, they showed de-escalation when it was appropriate."

After reoccupying the intersection for a couple of hours, protesters moved to the area of Baldwin and Washington, where they blocked traffic by emptying dumpsters and trash cans into the roadway.

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Demonstrators ignited five street fires as authorities tried clearing protesters from Washington Avenue toward Baldwin Street. Officers re-claimed the intersection of Williamson and Baldwin after midnight. 

"There were 22 physical arrests in totality," Patterson said Wednesday. "That includes, you know, the initial efforts in the morning (Tuesday) through late or early this morning (Wednesday) I guess, and then 10 individuals were cited."

Demonstrations end Wednesday

What we know:

After all-day chaos Tuesday and overnight, FOX6 News crews in the area of Baldwin and Williamson found a peaceful atmosphere throughout Wednesday morning and into the afternoon. 

A circle of flowers still marks where police shot and killed Corey Ruiz two weeks earlier. There were only a few protesters at the intersection by Wednesday afternoon. 

"I’m bringing flowers to commemorate the death of not just this person but lots of people that have been killed by the police," said Pamela Dempsey, who lives in the area. "I am sad, as a person that was born in Madison, that people couldn’t take the time to have a dialogue. We’re supposed to be advanced mammals. I don’t understand why we are working this way."

City officials' response

What they're saying:

Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, Police Chief John Patterson and other city officials held a news conference at 11 a.m. to provide an update Wednesday.

"I saw things last night that I haven't seen in years. I feel like our trust is very fragile right now. We have a tremendous amount of work to do," Patterson said. "I think this is an incredible police department. I think it's filled with incredible people, but we're not perfect. We have work we need to do. I've identified some areas that I think we're going to make immediate progress on, hopefully, and immediate steps to do some restructuring to help us get there, but that takes time into the mayor's point. It's near impossible to do it when you're in the middle of a crisis."

Rhodes-Conway reiterated that the streets cannot stay closed and people need to be able to access their homes and businesses. She added that the city is "committed" to allowing space for some sort of memorial, just not in the middle of traffic.

"I know that there's work that the police chief has already identified that needs to happen. It's very hard to do any of that work when we're in immediate crisis response," Rhodes-Conway said of starting to work on things the community has asked for, such as a memorial and policy change at the local and state levels. 

"I would ask our community to, let's keep the streets open, and let's, certainly, we invite people to exercise their First Amendment rights, but we need to be able to shift to that longer-term work right now."

Shooting investigation

The backstory:

Madison Police Chief John Patterson said officers responded to calls about a man stealing bicycles and checking car doors and confronted him on July 22, but he rode away on a bicycle.

Police later encountered the man again, at Baldwin and Williamson, and the man "fell or was pulled off the bicycle." There was a struggle in the middle of the intersection, and police said the man pulled out a knife and injured an officer.

Officers used a taser to try to take the man into custody before the injured officer shot the man, since identified as Corey Ruiz. Ruiz was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Madison police said the four officers involved were placed on administrative leave as the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation investigates the shooting as a homicide. 

The Madison Police Department does not have body-worn cameras for officers. After prior efforts to fund bodycams were shut down, Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway has said she will include funding for them in her next budget.

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