The Madison and University of Wisconsin-Madison Police Departments have been progressive in their officer-related investigations, which leaves them one step ahead of the recent 409 bill passed in Wisconsin, according to Marc Lovicott, UWPD spokesperson.
The bill requires Wisconsin police departments to seek outside parties to investigate “officer involved critical incidents,” according to Madison Police Department spokesperson Joel DeSpain. Wisconsin is the first state to implement this policy in the nation.
“The law that was passed really doesn’t have a huge impact on our department because it’s something that we already practice anyways,” Lovicott said.
According to Lovicott, UWPD Chief of Police Sue Riseling has been working with the Dane County Chiefs of Police Association to discuss the policy as a result of public feedback since September. Riseling and a number of other police chiefs formed a committee to officially implement the investigation standards with participating departments.
“Whenever an officer-involved shooting or death happens, there’s a pool of resources that we can pull from outside the departments to help investigate because of this group,” Lovicott said. “Madison police is a part of that group.”
DeSpain said the MPD follows its own Standard Operating Procedures which already encompasses Bill 409 policies.
