As Madison police used chemicals and less lethal weapons to disperse crowds damaging downtown buildings Monday night, proposals moving through the city’s legislative process would seek to limit those tools.
Madison Fire Department Chief Steven Davis said this equipment is needed, at times, to “protect life, protect property.” On Monday night, the fire department requested the Madison Police Department use chemical agents, like tear gas and pepper spray, to disperse a crowd standing near a looted business with gasoline poured inside it.
“We needed the crowds dispersed immediately,” Davis said during a press conference at the City-County Building Tuesday, highlighting the volatility of the situation. One proposal, sponsored by Alds. Patrick Heck, District 2; Shiva Bidar, District 5; Keith Furman, District 17; and Marsha Rummel, District 6, would prohibit the use of tear gas starting Nov. 17 and request a study of alternatives by the MPD.