An armed gunman was allowed to enter the Wisconsin State Capitol Building twice, seeking out Governor Tony Evers.
October 6, 2023

This is just un-freaking-believable!

The man, who was shirtless and had a holstered handgun, approached the governor's office on the first floor of the Capitol around 2 p.m. Wednesday, state Department of Administration spokesperson Tatyana Warrick said. The man was demanding to see the governor, who was not in the building at the time, Warrick said.

A Capitol police officer sits at a desk outside of a suite of rooms that includes the governor's office, conference room and offices for the attorney general.

The man was taken into custody for openly carrying a firearm in the Capitol, which is against the law, Warrick said. Weapons can be brought into the Capitol if they are concealed and the person has a valid permit. The man arrested did not have a concealed carry permit, Warrick said.

The man was booked into the Dane Count Jail but later posted bail.

He returned to the outside of the Capitol shortly before 9 p.m. with an assault-style rifle, Warrick said. The building closes to the public at 6 p.m. He again demanded to see the governor and was taken into custody.

It's pretty safe to say that the man was having a mental episode of some sort, although it's unknown whether it was a long or short term concern.

And just to think - ten years ago, the Capitol police, at the orders of the Republicans, were cracking down and arresting people for singing union songs, even to the point of going to their homes to nab those culprits.

solidarity_singer_getting_arrested

Now you can stroll into the Capitol with guns and they take a lackadaisical approach to the whole thing.

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