July 17, 2025 6:30p; Update 7-18 with KPD response
(WGTD)---A county-funded study that recommends dozens of changes to Kenosha County's emergency response plan raises questions over the decision-making process that was used during Kenosha's 2020 civil unrest.
The report appears to note that the county's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was activated only after the vast majority of damage was done and after two demonstrators were killed.
The 50-page study also hints of a disconnect between the Kenosha Police Department and the Kenosha County Sheriff's Office, with the study's authors writing, "We learned of a reluctance by KPD's then-senior-level leadership to engage in a unified command or to participate in the EOC."
The report describes the EOC as the backbone of an incident's command structure, and drives resources and provides support to help the operation at hand succeed. Any center is organized into four sections including planning, operations, logistics and finance/administration. Kenosha County's operations center is located in the Public Safety Building. It operates under the auspices of the county's Emergency Management Director who is a supervisor in the Sheriff's Office.
The report was presented to the County Board Tuesday night by a private attorney who is representing the county in three lawsuits that stem from the 2020 riots--not by the consulting firm that prepared the report, Jensen Hughes of Chicago.
Immediately following the attorney's presentation, Kenosha County Sheriff Dave Zoerner briefed the board on numerous changes that have already been made or are in the planning stage, including stepped-up training, revising the director's job description, planning a table top emergency government exercise, investing in a cell phone alert system and updating the county's overall emergency management plan.
While the goal of the study was to help the county improve it's plan, the report makes numerous references to government's response to the 2020 civil unrest.
The authors:
*Acknowledged that many residents during the riots relied on social media for information in the absence of official pronouncements which the report writers found to be unfortunately scarce. It cited false social media posts claiming that some facilities were on fire and that rioters were going to daycare centers. Without countering information, the posts gained traction.
*Determined that a typical after-action review to gauge what went right and what went wrong with the response was never conducted.
*Learned of confusion among officials over who was responsible for asking for help from outside agencies and how to request it.
*Praised middle managers for making competent decisions, and also noted that the sheriff's department had deputies on board who were formally trained in crowd control.
Asked whether the Kenosha Police Department would be hesitant in the future to join a unified command or participate in emergency management through the EOC, Chief Patrick Patton emailed: "The Kenosha Police Department routinely trains in ICS and is well-versed in the practical application of unified command. We utilize unified command whenever there is a multi-jurisdictional need to address an incident or crisis, and do so in the Kenosha County Emergency Operations Center when needed."
In written statements issued after Tuesday's presentations, County Executive Samantha Kerkman praised the report, saying it'll help build a strong foundation for future responses, should the need arise. Kenosha County Board Chair Monica Yuhas said she looked forward to giving further review to the assessment.
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