Robert Crimo III, who police say killed seven people and injured more than 30 in the Illinois shooting, came to Madison shortly after the shooting before returning to Illinois, where police arrested him, Christopher Covelli, sheriff’s spokesman of Lake County. he said on Tuesday. At the time, police said, Crimo had a .40 caliber collapsible rifle and 60 rounds of ammunition in his car. On Wednesday, Covelli said it was unclear why Crimo drove to the Madison area, but while there “he saw a party going on in Madison and seriously considered using the firearm he had in his vehicle to shoot again.” The gunman ultimately decided against it because he “didn’t put enough thought and research into it,” Covelli said.
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“We are deeply troubled to learn that the suspected killer in the Illinois parade is considering another attack here in Madison,” said Madison Police Chief Sean Barnes. “Our hearts go out to the grieving families in Highland Park and all those who were forever affected by the events of Monday’s shooting. We fully recognize that tragedy could have happened in our own community. This reality upsets all of us here in Madison, including members of the Madison Police Department.” Madison Police Chief Sean Barnes speaks during a press conference Wednesday. In a statement, he said his department recognizes that “a tragedy could very well have occurred in our community.” KAYLA WOLF, STATE GAZETTE Told by the FBI that Crimo could be in the Madison area, the department began mobilizing its SWAT team, but withdrew after learning that the suspect, whose name Barnes said he would not release, had been arrested in Illinois. Police in Illinois did not specify which incident at Madison Crimo they considered an assault. A series of celebrations took place in the Madison area on Monday. In Madison, Tribute to the Troops, a patriotic concert performed by the Capitol City Band, took place at Rennebohm Park, but bad weather led organizers to cancel Fourth Fest 2022, a celebration at The Edgewater Hotel. Monona’s annual three-day Community Festival at Winnequah Park continued through Monday. And at Shorewood Hills, the festivities stretched from 8:30 A.M. to sunset, including a parade. Madison’s largest organized Independence Day celebration, the Festival Foods Lights the Isthmus event at Breese Stevens Field, was held Saturday, two days before the shooting. Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said the incident underscored the need for federal action. Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway called on Congress to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. KAYLA WOLF, STATE GAZETTE “Weapons of war have no place in our community,” he said. “This time the shooter wreaked havoc in Highland Park and drove to Madison. Next time, it could be anywhere. On his way here he drove past hundreds of communities celebrating the Fourth of July. We are all at risk when weapons of war are on our streets.” Rhodes-Conway said Madison is working to “control illegal guns, hold people accountable for gun violence and invest in stopping and preventing violence” — but added that the city “can’t do it alone of” and called on Congress to impose an “assault weapons ban.” and large capacity magazines’.
The phone was left in Middleton
During his trip to the Madison area, Crimo left his cellphone behind in the 6500 block of University Avenue in Middleton, Covelli said. Police recovered the device and the FBI is reviewing it, authorities said. “I’m glad it got caught and my condolences to everyone affected,” said Shorewood Hills Village President David Benforado, who helped organize celebrations in the village, which borders University Avenue. “People should be free to participate in regular, everyday community events, like Fourth of July activities, without the threat of someone killing them with an assault weapon.” Shorewood Hills will review its security measures for next year’s Independence Day celebrations, Benforado said. In between, he reiterated Rhodes-Conway and urged Congress to reinstate the federal assault weapons ban that was in place from 1994 to 2004. At the Monona Community Festival, organizers and police were in “constant contact” throughout the day Monday, said Eric Redding, festival chairman. While the festival always works with the city and its police department and plans for a number of contingencies, Redding said organizers became “high alert” after news of the Highland Park shooting. “We live in the neighborhood in the grand scheme of things,” Redding said. “Learning after the fact that he was (in Madison), I’m glad that law enforcement and everybody was thinking that way. … We felt as safe as possible because of that close relationship.” The incident marked the first serious security scare the festival has ever faced, Redding said. Over the next year, organizers will consider additional precautions for the 2023 festival, he said. “It was definitely a little scary,” she said. “Those one-off situations that you hope never happen, but you want to make sure they’re planned for … I’m thankful we took the time to plan.” News of the Highland Park shooting reached James Latimer, director of the Capitol City Band, in the middle of the band’s Tribute to the Troops concert. “I almost broke down at the concert,” he said. With news of Crimo’s trip to Madison, Latimer said he was further concerned. “Our fabrics have been shaken to the core. As I said at the concert, we have to do something,” he said. “I try to be as careful as I can and tell others the same thing, but I am prepared for the fact that such an incident can happen, anywhere, at any time.”
Overlapping protection
Madison police have recognized the threat of mass shootings “for years,” Barnes said. The department is trained for such incidents and has adjusted its “major event staffing” accordingly. “We recognize that tragedy very well could have happened in our own community,” said Madison Police Chief Sean Barnes, center, flanked by Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and Dane County Sheriff Calvin Barrett. KAYLA WOLF, STATE GAZETTE “Mass shootings are all too common in our country,” he said. But large public events like parades and community festivals will always present security challenges, experts said. After the Highland Park shooting, police departments may respond by putting officers on rooftops, said Gary Raymond, owner of Great Lakes Security Services in Milwaukee, a private security firm. “They are constantly trying to adapt to new ways of crime,” he said of the police. “Now we have to worry about the people on the roofs.” Madison is deploying drones and “observers” (sniper shooters) during some events in Madison to monitor rooftops, Barnes said. Police could also start using cameras more along the parade routes since the cameras have helped identify Crimo, Raymond said. Organizers of large public events anywhere should also make sure they know how to create action plans for potential threats, said Mike Tobia, a former senior adviser to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and senior vice president at Brosnan Risk Consultants. While uniformed and plainclothes officers can have an impact, as can metal detectors and a secure perimeter, there is no single “magic pill” to keep a crowd safe, Tobia said. “It is the culmination of many things that come together to form the highest level…
