Content warning: This story contains information about violence.
A University of Wisconsin-Madison PhD student said Thursday, UWPD officers heightened a conflict between two groups of juveniles through the use of physical force Wednesday evening at the Memorial Union Terrace.
UWPD is investigating the incident, which stemmed from an earlier altercation between the two groups on State Street. One group arrived at the Terrace prior to the second group, upon which the conflict escalated, according to an email sent to the campus community. One suspect used pepper spray on members of the other groups, and at least one individual punched another group member.
In video footage sent by the PhD student, an officer grabbed and restrained a young girl, holding her down in a prone position with his knee. He also pulled a taser, pointing it at another young person and telling the crowd to “back up.” The student said other officers pushed minors during the conflict while shouting, and the girl who was held prone had her phone confiscated.
“I had recognized that this was a group of mostly young people of color, and I was immediately concerned that the police were going to escalate the situation,” the student told The Daily Cardinal, mentioning the groups were a mix of mostly girls with a few boys.
In a Thursday email sent to the Cardinal, Marc Lovicott, UWPD spokesperson, said the incident was “very volatile and chaotic” in a packed Terrace. Lovicott confirmed an officer did unholster his taser, but never used or deployed it.
He said a preliminary review of the incident indicated officers responded appropriately, but anytime use of force above compliant handcuffing occurs they conduct an internal review. Per UWPD’s policy, Lovicott said the incident will be investigated.
While the student did not have context for what started the altercation, she called it a “social conflict” in which the young people did not pose a threat to the officers. She said the police response through weapons and physical force “heightened the tension rather than calm things down” given the nature of people.
Lovicott said the officers’ quick actions ensured the safety of hundreds of bystanders who were at the Terrace. He also sent a link sharing that UWPD officers go through de-escalation training every year focused on communications skills so use-of-force is limited.
“Whenever someone is non-compliant and resisting, the optics are never good. It’s ugly. It’s hard to watch. This is something our officers also don’t enjoy,” Lovicott added.
UWPD identified several victims in the altercation, and issued citations to one person for disorderly conduct, underage alcohol consumption and assaultive behavior. Officers are still locating two remaining suspects, including the juvenile who deployed pepper spray.
Although a few others tried to document the situation, the student said many others on the Terrace were not disturbed and even made light of the situation.The student also mentioned a man who was caught at the end of the video footage, saying that “maybe they [the juveniles] deserved it.”
“No one was hurt, and no Terrace guests were impacted by the pepper spray,” the UWPD email reads. “Those group members who were pepper-sprayed declined medical treatment but were assisted by UWPD officers with decontamination.”
This article was updated Thursday, July 24, 2025 at 4: 15 p.m. to include an interview from a UW-Madison PhD student regarding the Wednesday evening altercation and additional response from UWPD.
Those with information or videos related to the assault can contact UWPD at their non-emergency line (608)-264-2677.
Ava Menkes is a former managing editor for The Daily Cardinal. She previously served as the state news editor. She has covered multiple elections, legislative redistricting, healthcare and campus news. She also led 2024 presidential coverage and a project on news deserts. She previously interned with Wisconsin Watch and Isthmus, and will report with The Nation in 2025 on foreign policy and immigration. Follow her on Twitter at @AvaMenkes.
