Friends of a 30-year-old man who died during a confrontation with a Madison police officer Nov. 9 gathered outside City Hall Friday evening to commemorate their friend and send a message to the police department and city officials.
Participants lit candles to honor the life of Paul Heenan, the man who was killed, according to Nathan Royko Mauer, a close friend and roommate of Heenan’s.
Madison Police Department Officer Stephan Heimsness encountered an intoxicated Heenan while responding to a call about a burglary in progress. After Heenan reportedly attempted to disarm him, Heimsness shot him three times, ultimately resulting in his death.
Royko Maurer said the vigil was orchestrated as a demonstration to the Madison Police Department that the community has not forgotten about the incident. The vigil was held because friends of Heenan and other members of the community felt MPD has not adequately complied with the actions they asked for.
Friends of Heenan and other Madison residents are still calling for an impartial investigation of Heimsness’s actions in the incident, according to Amelia Royko Maurer, another close friend and roommate of Heenan’s.
An internal investigation by the MPD determined Heimsness’s use of deadly force was reasonable and no department policies were violated, according to an MPD statement.
Nathan said although an independent review of the investigation upheld the MPD ruling, the results were not satisfactory because there were too many conflicts of interest with the officials who conducted the review.
MPD agreed to address the issue of impartiality in the future, but they will not readdress Heenan’s case, Nathan said.
While they can support future changes to the system, friends of Heenan believe the department should start with Heenan’s case. They should be willing to let someone who does not care about MPD to review the case and the investigation, Nathan said.
“They can make all the promises in the world, but we won’t believe them until they do it,” Nathan said.
The candlelight vigil included a slide projection of a selection of comments from signers of a petition calling for the removal of Heimsness from the streets. Organizers of the event also explained they still plan to present their change.org petition to Chief Noble Wray in person.
“An impartial investigation would be good for Heimsness,” Amelia said. “If he was cleared by an objectively impartial investigation, then he would be cleared with the community, community could trust him again and he would be working right now.”
Amelia said for now, the community needs to play it safe and not allow Heimsness to continue to patrol the streets. The city needs safe policing, she said.
Amelia said there was a strong turnout for the vigil overall.
“There are a lot of good, rational people who will stick with this until the end,” Amelia said. “There is a lot of love and commitment for Paulie out there.”
In addition to submitting the petition, Nathan said he and other city residents will continue to bring attention to the officer-involved shooting. Friends and residents are also starting another petition to ask specifically for an impartial review of the case and plan to hold more vigils, he said.
