Robinson’s death forced Madison — a liberal bastion that is home of the University of Wisconsin and the state capital — to confront racial divisions. Blacks make up about 7 percent of the population but more than that in arrests, incarceration and poverty. One demand from the Young, Gifted and Black group was to drop plans to renovate the county jail and free 350 black inmates.
Police Chief Mike Koval wrote in a blog post following Ozanne’s announcement that the city was at a crossroads, with the chance to show that “civic dissent and even acts of civil disobedience” can co-exist with police. Koval’s post included how protesters could avoid the most damaging arrests, and he posted a list of ordinance violations, misdemeanors and “protected activities” complete with fine amounts for the violations.
But police were also ready for the possibility of violence. A Madison police captain warned city leaders before Ozanne’s decision that police had received threats from reliable sources that gang members planned violence against police officers, according to an email sent the leaders provided to The Associated Press.
The shooting was another in a series of police confrontations that have ignited racial tension across the nation in the past year. Most recently in Baltimore, riots erupted after the funeral for Freddie Gray, a black man who suffered a fatal spinal injury while in police custody. Other high-profile cases of officers killing unarmed black residents include the deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri; Eric Garner in New York City; and Walter Scott in North Charleston, South Carolina.
Six officers involved in Gray’s death have been charged, as has the officer who killed Scott. Grand juries declined to charge the officers involved in Brown’s and Garner’s deaths.
Associated Press writers Scott Bauer and Dana Ferguson contributed to this report.
Article Appeared @http://news.yahoo.com/prosecutor-no-charges-against-white-police-officer-202245689.html