The Dog Depot Incident: Summary And Analysis

One of my political science professors used to say “Politics will take an interest in you, regardless if you take an interest in politics. I figured that out when tanks were rolling down my street.”

We don’t have tanks here in Oshkosh or Wisconsin, but the point remains the same. Whether you care or know about politics, it takes an interest in you. So it makes sense to return the favor.

If you pay attention to local news, you’ve undoubtedly heard about the arrest of The Dog Depo owner Lisa Binning. The Oshkosh Police Department (OPD) posted a summary on the incident on their Facebook page.

Ms. Binning opened her business on Friday, April 24th, believing to be following Governor Ever’s earlier order that allowed non-essential businesses to open on that date, in comments to WBAY News.

On the 24th, the OPD received a call from the Winnebago County Health Department (WCHD) that The Dog Depo was open and “violating” the “Safer At Home” order. Perhaps the same order Ms. Binning was referring to, but it’s unclear. What is clear that interpretations differed. A sergeant talked to Ms. Binning and told her that she needed to close.

Ms. Binning disagreed, and the sergeant said that he was going to refer her to the District Attorney (DA) for violating the order and that “each day her business continued to stay open would result in another charge.”

No further action, including arrest, took place on the 24th.

On Monday, April 27th, the OPD again made contact with Ms. Binning and told her to close. She refused, and then after consulting with the DA, she was promptly arrested for violating “Statute 252.52.”

It seems that the OPD meant Statute 252.25, part of the Communicable Diseases chapter of the Wisconsin State Legislature, which states:

Violation of law relating to health: Any person who willfully violates or obstructs the execution of any state statute or rule, county, city or village ordinance or departmental order under this chapter (Communicable Diseases) and relating to the public health, for which no other penalty is prescribed, shall be imprisoned for not more than 30 days or fined not more than $500 or both.

Ms. Binning was taken into custody, but that was short-lived, as the DA determined to not press charges against her. The WCHD also reinstated her license on the 28th with “no restrictions” per Director Doug Gieryn.

On the same day of the arrest, Governor Evers allowed for “non-essential business to do curbside drop off of goods and animals.”

Yesterday, a dozen “concerned citizens” held a rally outside the OPD building, upset with Ms. Binning’s treatment. A few had guns “strapped across their chests.” From photos in the Oshkosh Northwestern’s article, the guns appear to be larger than mere pistols.

Some of the attendees argued the rally was for all small businesses which are suffering greatly under the measures imposed on them by state and local governments.

That’s a lot of action in a week! Here are my thoughts.

In this difficult situation, it’s easy to label people as villains, but it’s hard to objectively see them as such once you have walked a mile in their shoes.

Let’s start with Ms. Binning. She said that she waited until the 24th to re-open, so we can assume she had been closed for several weeks prior. According to her nephew, Jon, who was present at yesterday’s rally, she was “responsible when she opened her business, only offering curbside dropoff and pickup and wearing a mask and gloves.”

The video of the arrest was proves several things. First, Ms. Binning was indeed wearing a mask and gloves. That suggests responsibility. Second, there wasn’t a struggle between Ms. Binning and the police- no excessive force used, no tasering, no argument. Both the police and the business owner had a difficult choice, and they choose to be as professional as they could.

The governor issued a modification to the “Safer At Home” order on the same day of the arrest, which suggests Ms. Binning was not far off in her interpretation of the law. Again, all charges have been dropped and her license has been reinstated.

The OPD was doing its duty in what it perceived to be the law. It did not immediately arrest Ms. Binning, but consulted with the DA’s office multiple times before doing so. They were stuck between a rock and a hard place.

As they stated on their Facebook page, “Our goal is always voluntary compliance. Filing charges is always our last resort.” Based on how they handled the situation, I believe that they acted according to their goal.

The protesters at the rally, while well-meaning, strike me as somewhat irresponsible and misguided. Bringing guns to a police department is naturally going to make people nervous. By all means protest, especially if you want to raise awareness on how small businesses are suffering. I am very sympathetic to that view.

To justify the rally, one protester said, “they are taking away our rights.” In other words, tyranny.

But what does tyranny mean?

Here are the facts. The OPD reviewed the law, talked to the DA’s office multiple times and warned Ms. Binning on both Friday and Monday. Furthermore, by the time of the rally, Ms. Binning had been released from custody, her license had been reinstated and the Governor had modified his “Safer At Home” order.

One person was arrested, which is undoubtedly traumatic, especially when you feel you’ve done nothing wrong. However, the arrest prompted change which will hopefully eliminate the need to arrest any other business owners during this crisis.

I would be more sympathetic to the protesters if the police hadn’t consulted the DA, or Ms. Binning was thrown into jail indefinitely, or Gov. Evers hadn’t modified his order, or there was a pattern of throwing business owners in jail. Under those circumstances, I would be more understanding of bringing guns, though it would still make me quite nervous.

The fact that the protest happened disproves the idea- tyrannies don’t allow for other people to have guns or protests, much less combine the two together!

To be fair, the wording of Statue 252.25 is vague, which prompts multiple interpretations. Since Ms. Binning wore a mask and gloves, as well as allegedly did curbside drop-off and pickup, but was still arrested could cause a lot of business owners to worry. Particularly when they are under enormous economic pressure and opening up is a matter of keeping their business, homes and putting food+drink on the table.

Ultimately, tyranny is a serious accusation and requires a high bar of proof. Ms. Binning’s arrest was unfortunate and if she desires to, she can pursue legal action. Yet, the arrest doesn’t justify the idea we’re living in an Orwellian state. As a result, we should critique and protest in a way that doesn’t unnecessarily escalate an already tense situation.

The protesters feel like we’re a few steps away from tanks down our streets. I don’t agree, but we all need to take an interest in politics. When crises arise, emotions run hot and misinformation spreads, an active, informed public is much more active than a disinterested, ignorant one.

Agree?

Originally published at https://theprimacyofpolitics.blogspot.com.