UW–Madison Police Department

Incident at University Research Park

  • Incident date: August 5, 2014, 7:45 am
  • Incident type: Disturbance
  • Location/address: Wisconsin Psychiatric Institute and Clinics

*** UPDATE: 8/6/14 – 9:45 a.m. ***

The subject in this case, S Jean Gibson, has died from her injuries. The case remains under investigation by the UW-Madison Police Department.

At approximately 8:00  a.m. Tuesday, the UW-Madison Police Department responded to the Wisconsin Psychiatric Institute and Clinics (WisPIC) building for a report of a disturbance.  A female, a former patient identified as S Jean Gibson, came to the building — clinic staff says she was banned from the building because of previous threats she had made.  Clinic staff told UWPD she had made statements recently indicating she had a gun, and she wasn’t afraid to use it.

Police quickly responded to the scene and learned the subject had left on foot, heading northwest into a field with heavy, thick vegetation.

UWPD along with City of Madison Police established a perimeter and started a search for Gibson. The WisPIC building was evacuated and nearby buildings were notified — but the main search area was the large field, just west of WisPIC.

As the day progressed, various search techniques were used to try and locate Gibson. The City of Madison Police Department used K9’s to track her, while the Dane County Sheriff’s Office used ATV’s. Despite the thick vegetation, K9’s were able to identify certain hotspots in the search area. At that point, UWPD made arrangements for an airplane to sweep the area — while MPD Mounted Units would respond to areas identified in the air.

Just before the airplane arrived, MPD mounted officers entered the search area to do a general sweep. A short time later, in a heavily wooded area within the search zone, MPD officers located Gibson, who had concealed herself in the vegetation. Officers had a verbal engagement with the subject. The subject was in fact armed, fired the weapon, and suffered a self-inflicted gun shot wound.

Other officers immediately responded to the area, disarmed the subject, and she was transported to a local hospital.

The case remains under investigation by the UW-Madison Police Department.

UWPD would like to thank the many agencies involved with the efforts — including the City of Madison Police Department, the Dane County Sheriff’s Department, and the City of Madison Fire Department.