Police departments from three small cities in Wisconsin notified the Milwaukee Police Department that they would no longer be sending officers to assist with the Democratic National Convention.
Officials from Fond du Lac, Franklin, Greendale, and West Allis, Wisconsin, announced on Monday that they would no longer be sending officers to join the conglomerate of more than 1,000 officers that were set to secure the convention because of the Milwaukee Police Department’s decision to restrict the use of tear gas for crowd control. Milwaukee Police Chief Alfonso Morales said that neither tear gas nor pepper spray will be used to secure the convention, which will take place from Aug. 17-20.
“We regret having to do that,” Fond du Lac Police Chief William Lamb told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We respect the Fire and Police Commission’s decision. But in this particular case, we strongly disagree with the actions they’ve taken.”
“We believe in removing those tools, the use of chemical irritants or pepper spray, from the available resources that the law enforcement officers would have at their disposal if protests become non-peaceful would severely compromise the safety of the public and also the safety of the law enforcement officers who would be assigned to protect the DNC,” he added.
Lamb said he expects more cities to drop out of the agreement in the coming weeks. Greendale Police Chief Ryan Rosenow said he was concerned that members of his department could be hurt if they were not allowed to use tear gas or pepper spray to clear crowds.
“I understand that use of chemical irritants and pepper spray is serious, and those are to be used only when legally justified,” he said. “But when you take that out of the continuum, that doesn’t leave the officers much other than getting harmed or using deadly force, and that’s not good for any officer or the public.”
Joe Biden is expected to be in Milwaukee to accept the party’s nomination, but most of the events will take place virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic. Protests are still expected to happen in the city while the virtual convention occurs.
