Madison Reopens East Washington Avenue After Police Book 16 in Protest Clash

Q: What sparked the midnight clash that forced Madison police to shut down a major avenue and arrest 16 people?

The clash was sparked by renewed protests after Madison police and city crews removed the encampment and memorial for Corey Ruiz at Williamson and South Baldwin streets earlier Tuesday. By late Tuesday night, demonstrators had returned to the area, again blocking traffic and, according to police, dumping trash into East Washington Avenue. Officers then ordered people out of the roadway, and that led to the confrontation that shut down the avenue between Baldwin and Dickinson streets. The broader anger driving the protest was Ruiz’s fatal police shooting on July 22 near the same intersection. The encampment had become both a memorial and a protest site over that shooting, so its removal reignited tensions that had already been building through the day. Police said 16 people were booked into the Dane County Jail after responding to the late-night scene. East Washington reopened early Wednesday, after being closed for about two and a half hours.

3 articles · Updated · WMTV · Aug 5

East Washington Avenue reopened in both directions at 1:44 a.m. Wednesday after a late-night closure between Baldwin and Dickinson streets, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
Police had shut the road at 11:17 p.m. and parked squad cars across it after protesters returned to the area and trash was dumped into the roadway.
Tuesday's confrontation followed intermittent traffic disruptions near Williamson and South Baldwin streets, where demonstrators again blocked vehicles after officers and city crews dismantled a Corey Ruiz encampment and memorial earlier in the day.
Madison police said 16 people were booked into the Dane County Jail after officers responded to the renewed protest.