When most patrons think of security at Summerfest, they probably first conjure up thoughts of the burly "red shirts" patrolling the grounds.

And rightfully so. With hundreds of Summerfest security staff stationed all over the grounds each day, the Milwaukee Police Department doesn't need to keep an overwhelming presence during the 11-day event.

Still, the uniformed cops are there at all times, providing backup to the "red shirts," ready to act if things get out of hand for the unarmed security -- and quietly patrolling the grounds to make sure fest patrons are obeying the law.

"It's Summerfest's security, it's their festival, and we're here to assist them," says Sgt. Ken Henning, who oversees the police force on the grounds.

The MPD won't disclose the number of cops staffing Summerfest, nor will they discuss the number of arrests being processed through the "Summerfest jail" in the Police Command Post just north of gate six.

But last Friday, as I did a "walk along" with Officers Scott Siller and Bryon Downey, it was clear that there is an ample police presence, and something must be working, as the "jail" was nearly empty both at the beginning and the end of their shifts.

Summerfest's police strategy has gone high tech over the years, utilizing dozens of security cameras scanning the grounds, as well as staffing a mobile booking room in the jail that operates as a fully-functioning police station.

Says Henning, "Most of the time after you receive your citation, you're released right from Summerfest grounds. If it's a more serious offense or if you're from out of state, you're taken Downtown to our jail."

But despite the holding cells with grommets for handcuffs, most of what we saw Friday night was garden-variety disobedience: underage drinking and pot smoking near the rocks. On a daily basis, the police also see a lot of public urination and disorderly conduct.

"It's about 98 percent underage drinkers," says Henning, who met me in the jail before our patrol began. "I've been down here for 15 years. It's amazing -- most of the kids that we arrest are not from the City of Milwaukee, they're from the suburbs. The Milwaukee kids know that (MPD) is here and is arresting people for this stuff. They know that you've got to behave."

Mind you, Siller, 38, and Downey, 35, don't take great pleasure in busting 19-year-olds for drinking a beer. Not only do they remember what it was like to be a teenager, Siller says he's personally conflicted that he has to write a ticket to someone old enough to give his or her life in the military overseas, but too young to legally drink at home.

Still, Siller and Downey (who normally works with District 7) have a job to do in their eight-hour shift, which they both volunteered to do as overtime, and I join them on their patrol around 8 p.m.

Picking Their Battles

Since 1996, Siller has tried to take a least one or two shifts at Summerfest each year. "I like doing it; it's my day off," he says, noting that it's a big change of pace from his normal duties with Fugitive Apprehension Unit.

As sun sets, Siller, Downey and I slowly make our way to the rocks along the lake, where most of the illegal activity tends to occur. The officers scan the crowd, looking for anything out of the ordinary. That can be a darting glance, the breaking of eye contact, or more seriously, someone tugging on their shorts or pants, which could indicate the presence of a gun. Both officers are, of course, armed, but neither are carrying Tasers. Like always, they are wearing their bulletproof vests.

Downey, a former firefighter, explains to me that the red shirts have made his job much easier at Summerfest. Many of them are off-duty law enforcement officials -- cops, patrol officers and prison guards. Others are teachers who know how to diffuse a tense situation. The off-duty cops, he says, wear a blue lapel pin on their red shirts.

Both Siller and Downey admit that they've wanted to be police officers as long as they can remember. Separately, both tell me that they used to watch "CHiPs" as kids, and Siller explains that he was looking for a job that satisfied his need to "live to work and work to live." Downey, the former firefighter, says he "loves helping out people," and despite the cliché, I believe him.

Even though their shift ends at midnight, it's not uncommon for the officers to be stuck at Summerfest until 4 a.m., so Downey says he needs to "pick his battles." In other words, with tens of thousands of fest patrons, too many are breaking the law to be caught.

The team needs to use discretion, to pick and choose -- who to warn, who to kick out and who to arrest.

Three Patrons

On Friday night, I see three types of people interacting with the officers. The first type is looking for help, asking for directions to bathrooms, stages or ATMs -- and kids who stop us throughout the night hoping for baseball cards.

The second group, through alcohol or otherwise, is simply enamored with these men in uniform. These patrons either know the officers or just want to pose for photos. A group of tipsy girls near the Miller Lite Oasis, for example, is all over Siller, a physically imposing figure who towers over the crowd. They try to pinch him, ask to be handcuffed and flirt shamelessly. Siller indulges them for a few minutes before getting back to work. As the public face of the MPD, he knows he needs to keep a sense of humor, shaking kids' hands and even posing for pictures with drunk girls once in a while.

The third group is what Downey and Siller are really looking for: the patrons breaking the law. We run into our first example of this by the mid-gate fountain.

Spotting the Signs

I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary, but Siller spies a group of three young men averting their gazes. One switches his cup of beer into his opposite hand, trying to hide it from the cops. Downer and Siller recognize this maneuver, and card them immediately. Two of the three men are legal; the other is 20 years old.

As the officers prepare to bring in the underager, his two friends immediately vanish -- without so much as saying goodbye or good luck -- this becomes a recurring act all night. Siller doesn't frisk or handcuff the man, who is escorted away by two other officers who were in the area. "He dictates our level of force," he says. "He'll just get a ticket."

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9 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review.

Recent Talkbacks ...

Posted by CJ on July 8, 2009 at 4:41 p.m. (report)

How do you have a "mobile" booking room in a stationary jail?

Posted by Chrisna on July 1, 2009 at 4:32 p.m. (report)

@ Festhead That's right. It's state law that kids can drink in the presence of their parents. Some places refuse to do this (I know some chain restaurants don't allow it) but not because it's illegal.

Posted by MickeySavage on July 1, 2009 at 2:50 p.m. (report)

Love this article, Andy! I don't know these cops personally or anything, but I'd be willing to bet money that they wouldn't have handled things any differently if you weren't there observing. Kudos to the MPD!

Posted by older/wiser on July 1, 2009 at 1:41 p.m. (report)

Great article. Thanks for sharing. And thanks to the MPD for their presence at all summer events in the city. I know there are still plenty of officers out on the streets stopping the drunks that think they can beat the outgoing traffic jams. I would love to see another report on spending a shift with one of the red shirts that also prevent and protect us on the Summerfest grounds. Sometimes their bouncer mentality gets on my nerves, but everyone needs to feed their ego, I suppose. Still enjoying the Big Gig after all these years.

Posted by High_Life_Man on July 1, 2009 at 9:59 a.m. (report)

I was just saying that the kid's fingerprints should have been destroyed on the spot (and that may have happened, but I doubt it). He was not charged with a crime, so they had no right to keep them. Then again, I am not a constitutional lawyer. A lot of us have our fingerprints in the system - due to, and including, joining the military and kidnap identification booths. The bartending fingerprints were voluntary, so you gave your consent for them to be added to the system. Don't get me wrong, I think the cops do a fantastic job at SF. I just think cops busting people for petty crimes, which take them off patrol, is not a good use of their time (that they are getting paid good money for).