Police arrested Carlos Avilar, 27, on the 500 block of State Street for second-degree reckless endangerment, carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a switchblade at bar time Sunday morning.
Two bouncers removed two men from a State Street bar when an argument began, according to a release. One of the men who had been removed from the bar confronted Avilar as he was waiting in line to get inside. Avilar pulled out a switchblade and opened it, but there was no physical harm done to the man, the release said.
Madison police officers responded to the disturbances at the bar and found Avilar inside, where the police officers arrested him for carrying a weapon. Avilar was taken to the Dane County Jail.
Lt. Carl Strasburg of the Madison Police Department said there are many different factors regarding the charges for this type of incident.
“Just for carrying the knife or carrying a concealed weapon [carries a] $200 bill,” Strasburg said. “Obviously, a separate crime would be the action they are doing.”
According to Strasburg, charges with possession of a weapon can include disorderly conduct and reckless endangerment and can range from misdemeanors to felonies.
Wisconsin law prevents a person from knowingly hiding a dangerous weapon, a Class A misdemeanor. Owning a switchblade, or a knife that “opens by pressing a button, spring or other device in the handle or by gravity or by a thrust movement” also classifies as a Class A misdemeanor according to state law.
Bouncers also experienced problems during bar time early Friday morning when approximately 250 people “poured” onto the 100 block of King Street, according to a release.
The crowd prevented vehicles from traveling down King Street and fights began to break out. Inside a King Street bar, two men began fighting when bouncers and bar staff tried to break the fight up.
Thirty-two-year-old Sedrick Williams of Madison was arrested and brought to the Dane County Jail after smashing a bottle across the face of a person he was in an argument with, the release said.
Williams was charged with disorderly conduct while armed, but the victim fled the scene before the police officers could identify him.