Read it and weep: Madison’s high schools should keep their cops

Amelia Royko Maurer appears to have some anger issues. I don’t know if her cop hate originated with or precedes the death of her friend Paul Heenan* in November 2012 but wherever there is an opportunity, our Derail the Jail-er is front and center to bash the police.

Amelia Royko-Maurer

Ms. Royko-Maurer now plays the martyr. She, too, is a victim — a victim of the police! Her story is that police refused to respond to her own police call for help as the price she pays for daring to buck the police power structure. Oddly enough, now this woman vows to take matters into her own hands in what sounds frighteningly like vigilante justice.

At its January 16 meeting, Ms. Royko-Maurer told the Madison Common Council that police refused to respond to her call for help because of her anti-cop activism. That calumny has been effectively refuted. Royko-Mauer told the Council that her young daughter walking with a 9-year-old friend was “chased by three young men.” Transcribed from the official audio at 2:48:04 to 2:51.46:

She went hardware store got what she needed and then came home. I called the non-emergency number, I was scared in part because … the people [her daughter] described are people who often fill our jails and become subject of, you know, oppression in our community.

(How the poor liberal-progressive-socialist chokes on the words. C’mon, Amelia, say it: They were black. African-American.)

So I wanted to take a measured approach, I wanted to call the police to ensure there would be some accountability but didn’t want to set off an alarm that might risk lives unnecessarily of people who may not be the people and also who had not killed anyone, they just did something that was very dangerous.

(That’s right, Amelia, those trigger-happy cops haven’t got their bag limit, yet.) Now for the big lie:

Nobody visited my home, nobody came to my door so there is a penalty when you do what I do. …. because when we do speak out … What I found when I did an open records request is that another person within the department said let me take this case it should be closed but Central District said no, the case is closed. So there is a risk … so I am dealing with that case, I am finding those people, I’m trying to find a community process … because men shouldn’t do that to girl, when men  follow a child to school, the case isn’t closed when my case is closed. But it’s not all about me … or this strange obsessive cult following of Chief Koval it is people who are targeted mostly by the police when we have too many of them.

What the records shows

This week, MPD Captain Jason Freedman responded:

During her public comment at the January 16 Common Council meeting, Ms. Amelia Royko-Maurer referenced an incident involving a family member and made several statements suggesting that she did not receive a response or adequate service from the Central Police District.  Those comments did not accurately reflect the level of service provided by MPD, and I feel compelled to provide some additional information regarding the incident and our response.

• Ms. Royko-Maurer called dispatch reference the incident and indicated that she preferred to receive a phone call from the officer.

• An officer did return her phone call shortly after being dispatched.

• The officer checked the area for the subjects and collected video of potential involved parties; weeks later that same officer attempted to track down individuals who may have been involved (without success).

• At Ms. Royko-Maurer’s request, a female officer interviewed her daughter; the interview took place at Ms. Royko-Maurer’s residence and in the presence of Ms. Royko-Maurer.

• The daughter told the officer the subjects never made any threatening or solicitous remarks or statements to her.

• The daughter told the officer that her 9-year-old friend who was with her did not appear to be disturbed by the incident.

• Five reports were generated by two officers; the MPD case is #2017-342775.

I spoke at length with Ms. Royko-Maurer during the investigation and again at the conclusion of the investigation.  I listened to her concerns and explained the process and the outcome.

Based on the investigation, I did not find probable cause that a crime was committed, nor were any subjects positively identified.  Lacking both of these elements, an individual cannot be arrested or cited for an offense.  Separately, I consulted with two lieutenants and asked for their review of this case; both advised that they did not find probable cause that a crime was committed; nor was a subject positively identified.

Following my last phone call with Ms. Royko-Maurer, another lieutenant contacted me about the case.  I provided that lieutenant with the case details and steps already taken and he concurred that there was no basis for further action or investigation.

The level of service provided by MPD regarding this complaint was appropriate and in no way inferior to what would have been provided to any other citizen.  Please contact me with any questions.

Royko-Maurer threatens vigilante justice

Ms. R-M responded

This is disappointing, Capt. Freedman. Your story is incomplete and your priorities, clear. Wish me luck. I’m meeting with someone tonight to help me identify the young men who chased my daughter and the 9-year old who didn’t understand what was going on but was fortunate to have my daughter with her. Once we identify the men, we will do our best to find justice with a community-based process since that is our only option. [Her emphasis]

We’ll let everyone know how that goes.

Blaska’s Bottom Line — Amelia Royko-Maurer insists that Madison police are not accountable to the public. A little accountability on her part might be in order.

[* Poor Mr. Heenan was more than three times the legal limit of intoxication when he invaded a neighbor’s home in the middle of the night, assaulted him, then turned on the police officer sent to respond. The police officer was exonerated by an independent inquiry but the city paid out $2.3 million anyway because it lacks the stomach to fight the tort lobby.]