An internal review by the Madison Police Department Wednesday found Officer Matt Kenny did not violate the department’s policy on the use of deadly force in the shooting of Tony Robinson.
Robinson, a black 19-year-old, was fatally shot March 6 following a scuffle with Kenny at 1125 Williamson St. Last month Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne announced there would be no criminal charges against Kenny.
MPD launched the internal review to determine whether Kenny violated department policy on the use of deadly force during the incident. According to MPD policies, deadly force is only permitted in special circumstances in which the officer believes he or someone else is in danger of serious harm or death, or if he believes the suspect may go on to hurt others.
Kenny said in his testimony to the district attorney he had heard a disturbance within the building and believed that someone was being assaulted inside. He also said he believed that Robinson could have incapacitated him, taken his weapon and gone on to hurt others with it. The investigation reported Kenny fired his weapon seven times.
In a press conference, Police Chief Mike Koval said if Kenny had violated the policy, he would have been subject to sanctions including dismissal from the department. Koval said Kenny will eventually return to work at the department.
In the weeks following Robinson’s death, groups such as the Young Gifted and Black Coalition have held peaceful protests which were reignited when Ozanne opted not to charge Kenny with any criminal wrongdoing.
Following the department’s decision, YGB Co-organizer Matthew Braunginn said they expected the outcome and criticized the lack of internal accountability within the department.
“These are state-sanctioned gangs,” said Braunginn on police forces.
Braunginn also said YGB is calling for an independent investigation into police abuse by the United Nations. He said police departments must be held accountable to the community in a more concrete way.
The MPD officer in charge of department policy was unavailable for comment.
In an interview at Wisconsin Professional Police Association offices, Kenny’s legal council, WPPA Executive Director Jim Palmer, said that they believe the decision was the correct one.
“Several law enforcement agencies were involved in the extensive investigations that have been conducted in this matter, and we are pleased that both the internal investigation and the criminal investigation concluded that Officer Kenny’s actions were appropriate, lawful, and in accordance with the rules governing his conduct,” Palmer said in the statement.
