The end of a near-orderly weekend became violent when Madison

police used pepper spray to dissolve a crowd of 5,000 late Saturday

night near Library Mall. Police also ticketed 170 mostly

out-of-state students Saturday night.

Seven businesses had multiple broken windows and two trees were

uprooted before police wearing protective gear sprayed

“body-slamming” revelers around 3 a.m. on the 500 block of State

Street near State Street Brats.

After the band Room Service finished its concert on Library Mall

around 1 a.m., the crowd dispersed and grew unruly again on the 500

block, causing police to put on their protective gear. Police said

they met resistance when moving in on the crowd; people threw wood

and glass containers at police and some tried to attack police,

they said.

“There was a notable reduction in glass containers. People had

trouble finding projectiles; that couldn’t be said last year,” said

City Council President Mike Verveer at a press conference

Sunday.

The crowd on State Street Saturday numbered as high as 40,000

and police officers reported a “different atmosphere” with more

unruly crowds than Friday, when police estimated that 60,000 to

65,000 people were on State Street.

Verveer, who saw the incident, said between 2:30 and 3 a.m. the

crowds moved to the 500 block from the Capitol end of State Street,

and police from that end shifted to the block as well.

Police waited until they had gathered sufficient resources to

successfully break up the crowd.

“Toward the end there were few officers that did not have

protective gear,” Assistant Chief Noble Wray said Sunday.

Police arrested 13 people Saturday night for such offenses as

disorderly conduct, obstruction and destruction of property. Police

videotapes caught the entire incident and police are reviewing them

to find additional perpetrators and witnesses.

The crowd dispersed to the surrounding blocks, continuing to

cause disturbances such as property damage, police said.

Because Saturday night’s incident did not have the same level of

violence as last Halloween, police and city officials said it is

not correct to label it a riot.

“Unlike last year, there [were], thank God, no serious injuries,

no tear gas and no looting,” Verveer said.

Two “flashpoints” on State Street acted as catalysts for the

uprising: one at the University Inn overlooking State Street and

one in the apartments above where the Sugar Shack was previously

located on State Street, according to Verveer.

University Inn guests were singing the University of Minnesota

Golden Gopher fight song and exposing themselves to the crowd below

on State Street, causing crowds to throw pebbles, plastic bottles

and parts of their costumes at the out-of-state guests.

Verveer said that on both Friday and Saturday night police went

door-to-door taking rowdy people out of the windows, but no

officers were patrolling the hotel at the time of the uprising.

City officials and police denied a direct connection between the

uprising and the ending of the city-approved concert on Library

Mall.

“The concert went off without a hitch,” Verveer said. “There

were no problems of any consequence.”

Wray said the investigation is currently too incomplete to begin

to examine if any changes to the city’s plan for next year’s

Halloween are necessary.

Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz expressed disappointment Sunday

morning over Saturday’s incident, but he commended the community’s

planning for the weekend and the law enforcement’s response to the

situation.

“We will be conducting a thorough review of this weekend’s

events and the circumstances that led up to the property damage. I

will again work closely with police, university officials, downtown

businesses and student groups to prepare for next year,” Cieslewicz

said in a statement.

City officials and police said they were able to minimize

property damage due to their months of planning efforts for the

weekend.

“I don’t know what could have been done any differently to

prepare for last night,” Verveer said.

Also Saturday, several people turned a black Volvo on its side

on the corner of Mifflin and Bassett streets at around 1 a.m.

Police responded about five minutes later and towed the car and

arrested one person.

Police said Friday night, on the other hand, was an “overall fun

and safe night.” Police issued 180 tickets and 90 percent of them

were to University of Minnesota students, Verveer said.

Most citations were for underage consumption or possession of

alcohol, open intoxicants on the street, disorderly conduct and

similar offenses.

Five people were arrested for resisting arrest and ambulances

responded to 55 calls for alcohol-related issues, police said.

Police also said they were pleased to see students and

bystanders step in to prevent several situations from escalating

Friday night.

The police issued a total of 400 alcohol-related citations

Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.