The recent mistreatment of Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill by Florida police officers was a shocking incident, Madison’s police chief, a Dane County judge and other community leaders said at an Oct. 2 forum on the city’s south side.
Former Madison Police Chief Noble Wray moderated the forum attended by more than 70 people. The panelists included current Police Chief Shon Barnes, Circuit Court Judge Everett Mitchell, United Way of Dane County CEO Renee Moe and Tutankhamun “Coach” Assad, the founder of the Coach’s Crib, a former mental health program for La Follette High School students.
The panelists attacked the behavior of Miami-Dade Police Department officers who detained Hill Sept. 8 while on his way to participate in an NFL game. Hill, who is Black, was handcuffed and placed face down on a street near the Dolphins’ stadium after being stopped for speeding and reckless driving, according to the Associated Press.
Assad told the Cap Times he helped organize the Oct. 2 forum at Madison’s Black Business Hub because he believes it is vital for the community to discuss racism, even if the discussion centers around incidents taking place outside of the city.
“We, as Black people, must stop getting comfortable with tiny gains and always understand that we must always be in work mode because racism doesn’t sleep. Misogyny doesn’t sleep. Any type of hatred, it doesn’t sleep,” Assad said.
Assad said it takes a collective effort to stand up to racism and hatred, which is why he wanted the panel to come together.
“If you’re hungry, then I’m hungry,” he said. “If you don’t have a crib, I don’t have a crib. If you’re cold, I’m cold. If I’m bold, then I need you to be bold. It’s about all of us as a collective.”
The forum began by viewing body camera footage of Miami-Dade police officers detaining Hill, a Super Bowl champion and five-time All-Pro selection. Hill is known for being one of the fastest players in league history.
“This really shocked my conscience,” Barnes said of the incident. “And had me wondering what the culture of that agency must be.”
Barnes said the incident underscored the need for Madison police officers to wear body cameras. The agency launched a pilot program of officers wearing body cameras in April.
“We need body worn cameras, period,” Barnes said.
Mitchell said a culture permeates some police officers, regardless of the race of the officers, against people of color. He said Madison officers are protected by the police union and urged union leaders to be involved in panels examining racism in policing.
Madison police officers may be fired for misconduct by the city’s Police and Fire Commission rather than by the city’s mayor or police chief, unlike other cities. Mitchell said this approach means officers don’t have to necessarily fall in line with the culture being set by agency leaders.
“There are unions that have a lot more influence,” Mitchell said. “(Barnes) can be out there preaching all day long but they have a separate culture that doesn’t necessarily have to be accountable to whatever culture he’s talking about.”
Mitchell and other panelists shared personal stories about mistreatment they received or witnessed by police. After calling for accountability in 2015 when Madison Police Officer Matt Kenny fatally shot a teenager, Tony Robinson, Mitchell said officers left antagonistic notes on his car or implied they had his home address and phone number.
“They wanted to send me a message about being critical of police unions because of the leaders they had,” Mitchell said.
The panelists discussed what Miami-Dade officers and Hill could have done differently and pointed to initiatives in Madison aiming to prevent the kind of policing Hill faced. Barnes talked about Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement, a program Madison police adopted after the 2020 murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers. The program focuses on holding officers accountable for their roles in each other’s actions.
After the 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, Moe said she participated in community conversations to discuss why people fear police. Brown’s fatal shooting by an officer sparked protests and drew federal scrutiny to Ferguson’s policing practices.
“The Law Enforcement Leaders of Color Collaboration started in 2014,” Moe said. “One of the first issues we tackled was the use of force. It was law enforcement that came together and said we need to start building some relationships with communities of color, so that if this happens here — and, of course, it did — we’ve got some lines of communication open and some trust built.”
Moe said one result of those conversations was a heightened awareness about how many people fear police.
“Law enforcement is the only profession that has the legal right to take your freedom, your liberty and your life,” she said.
Assad appreciated the panel’s discussion about programs, outreach, leadership and the recent incident involving Hill. But he said the actions of the officers need to be dealt with, too.
“It’s about accountability and consequences,” Assad said. “If you don’t give a damn about people who you don’t see as being human, and there aren’t consequences, then what are we talking about?”
