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Police: Lock up doors at Mifflin

JEFF SCHORFHEIDE/Herald photo

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by Cara Harshman

Friday, April 18, 2008

The Madison Police Department laid out a plan Thursday night to bring safety measures at the upcoming Mifflin Street Block Party “back to basics.”

According to Lt. Mark Brown, “Lock your windows, lock your doors and lock your valuables,” are three messages police want to emphasize for Mifflin and Bassett street and West Washington Avenue residents May 3, when thousands of University of Wisconsin students will take to the streets to party.

“It’s just amazing how many people will leave expensive laptops laying around when they’ve got a hundred people in their house they don’t even know,” Brown said at the Downtown Coordinating Committee meeting.

Residential and commercial burglaries have been a prevalent issue for MPD this year, with about 30 incidents reported to police since March 1.

Ald. Eli Judge, District 8, also a UW junior, said he will work with Brown to get the safety messages out to the masses at Mifflin. Judge said it’s challenging to communicate the warning to students without “sounding like mom and dad.”

“We need more unique ways to translate the message you’ve been hearing since you were a kid,” Judge said.

An effective technique Brown said police have used in previous years at Mifflin is walking up and down the street just talking with people. Brown added he introduces himself as Mark rather than Lt. Brown to make students more comfortable.

“It puts a name with a face,” Brown said. “The kids like to have their pictures taken with the cops.”

In the 20 years Brown has worked for the MPD, he said the last four to five block parties have “gotten progressively better.”

In 2007, Brown said Mifflin residents followed police instruction and turned off their music at 8 p.m., adding, “It was dusty quiet.”

Rosemary Lee, a member of the DCC and long-time Madison resident, said with “more and more older people like me” present it helps keep the peace at the party, which has seen outbreaks of violence in past years.

Brown said awareness of safety precautions is extremely important this year as the community is on edge in wake of the April 2 homicide of UW junior Brittany Zimmermann in her nearby West Doty Street home.

“A lot of cops take this one very personal,” Brown said. “Whatever I can do to get the message out, please, please, please lock your doors. Don’t make it easier for people to get in your house.”

Judge said he has noticed the UW community “looking out for each other more than ever.” If he walks home late at night alone, he said people come up to him asking if he wants someone to walk with.

“If there’s any silver lining to this terrible tragedy, it seems to have really started a discussion (about safety) that we’ve needed to have for years,” Judge said.

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Anonymous (April 18, 2008 @ 9:40am):

How about if we promise to lock our doors if the cops promise to fight crime instead of giving out tickets for having a beer on a sidewalk or playing your music too loud?

Anonymous (April 18, 2008 @ 9:51am):

"In 2007, Brown said Mifflin residents followed police instruction and turned off their music at 8 p.m., adding, â��It was dusty quiet.â��

-This is complete bullshit. I live on Mifflin street, and as I was sitting on my porch I saw numerous police going into people's homes forcing them to stop playing music or have a band stop playing very early in the afternoon. I'm sure this year will not be much better.

Anonymous (April 18, 2008 @ 1:45pm):

ok pigs!

Anonymous (April 18, 2008 @ 5:14pm):

oink oink!

Anonymous (April 19, 2008 @ 10:42am):

SO, the police are accomodating to thousands of students who only want to get drunk, shutting down streets for the entire day at an inconvenience to anyone wanting to drive through the area, and giving advice on how people can prevent themselves from becoming a victim of burglary, and the only comments on here are negative towards police. Sounds to me like the cops are doing their job well. They are pulling out all the stops to help ensure the safety of everyone on that street. If some underage kid was drunk and the cops didn't address it, and that kid got hurt or worse, everyone would be yelling for the cops' heads. Keep up your whining, and I hope that the plug gets pulled on this whole block party, and the cops start ticketing people for impeding traffic and blocking the sidewalk.

Anonymous (April 19, 2008 @ 5:49pm):

To 10:42am,
I agree the cops are doing their jobs during this event. However, they are responsible for keeping the peace. If a drunk underager or a person of age is at the potential of getting hurt then it is a officers job to make sure that doesn't happen. But to abuse their powers, and walk into peoples home to shut off music, hand out pointless noise violations, and arrest people for no respectful reason, then they are not doing there job. With the block party in place, in which the two blocks of Mifflin street are closed down and no cars are allowed through, then I don't understand why people are getting forced to turn off their music when everyone is just looking to have a good time. And it would not surprise me if within five years the block party is cancelled or even worse, turned in to a money making project as they did to Halloween.

Anonymous (April 19, 2008 @ 9:27pm):

Is the last poster serious? Why would anyone want to hold a police officer responsible for an underage drinker's irresponsibility? Why not just blame the kid? The cops are not doing the job that they were hired to do. If, god forbid, the party turned into a ravenous mob with people harming each other left and right, then it would make sense for the cops to step in. You are pathetic for feeling that cops should tell you what is an appropriate decibel level in which to listen to your music. I also love the sob-story about those that can't get through Mifflin street. Boo-hoo, one street is closed; not the major inconvenience you seem to be implying. If freedom were a real thing, we wouldn't have to consult cops in order to have a party. And when it comes down to it, a cop can only do so much, better we take our own measures to maintain safety and respect. I don't need someone to take care of every aspect of my life. There is a phrase for the "advice" the cops are giving to students....it's called common sense; nothing more.

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