Sunday, June 1, 2008

All Flynn's Horses and All Flynn's Men

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

An 18-year-old man was on a crowded street at N. 3rd and W. Highland Ave. during RiverSplash last night when he was shot in the right foot, Milwaukee police said this morning.

The man was treated and released at a local hospital and had no idea where the gunshot had come from.

Radio traffic at the time indicated the man was shot as police were attempting to disperse a large crowd that had gathered.

Numerous police officers, including officers on horseback, were in the area dispersing the crowd.

Police this morning described the scene as chaotic and said squads rushed to the area from at least two police districts because of the thousands of people in the area.

What a way to kick off Milwaukee's summer festival season!

So much for Gemütlichkeit.

Conditions were perfect for RiverSplash for a change. The weather has been absolutely beautiful.

Instead of cold and rain, gunfire in the crowd has put a major damper on the festival.

Even with a strong police presence at events, there's still violence, gun violence.

What now, Police Chief Ed Flynn?

I think metal detectors at all events at the Summerfest grounds may be in order.


Of course, an open festival like RiverSplash doesn't have the attendance controls that Maier Festival Park has. There are no gates. Perhaps the days of open street festivals, like RiverSplash and Bastille Days, are over for Milwaukee.

No doubt Flynn will talk about reality and perception.


Perception just took a turn for the worse with last night's shooting, and that perception is based on reality. The fear of gun violence at a festival is not groundless.

There's reason to be afraid.

Bottom line: Measures need to be taken to reassure people that they're safe from flying bullets at festivals.

Thugs need to be disarmed. They can't be allowed to walk among the law-abiding people. They need to be taken off the streets and KEPT off the streets.

Expect Mayor Tom Barrett to express his outrage and call for tougher gun legislation from Madison; or expect him to ignore the incident altogether.

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Video from TMJ4
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The RiverSplash shooting wasn't the only one in Milwaukee last night.

A 27-year-old woman was murdered at a house party.

In a separate incident, outside a bar, a 36-year-old man was shot in the chest. He's expected to survive.


Ah, summer in the city...

2 comments:

Jimi5150 said...

No kidding. You'd think even the thugs would want to chill out.

Mary said...

I think the thugs saw the festival as an opportunity to do what they enjoy: intimidate, threaten, disrupt, and frighten.