Madison Police Department Chief Noble Wray apologized Tuesday for a recent incident in which police had homeless people’s belongings removed to a city dump facility.
Wray apologized on behalf of the MPD to a group of Madison’s homeless who owned property, such as grocery bags and suitcases, city maintenance staff removed from concourse mall at the end of State Street near the Capitol square Oct. 10.
City officials are working on adjusting procedures for the MPD and the Madison Parks Department in dealing with unattended belongings, according to Wray.
“Every citizen in the city of Madison has a right to be treated with dignity and respect,” Wray said during the apology, emphasizing the MPD considers the homeless citizens of Madison entitled to those same rights.
Homeless and housing activist Brenda Konkel said Wray’s apology, which comes after a city Homeless Issues Committee asked city officials to make a formal apology, is a “huge step forward” in spreading the ideas of homeless’ rights.
“Hopefully this is the beginning of the police department starting to think more about the policies of how they treat the homeless,” Konkel said.
