Man shares story of brutal assault on State Street, hoping to bring awareness to ongoing issues

September 25, 2019 12:45 AM

Jamie Perez,

Posted: September 25, 2019 12:45 AM

Updated: August 31, 2021 12:23 PM

by Jamie Perez

MADISON, Wis. — On Aug. 24 around 11 p.m., Patrick Kempfer said he was brutally attacked on State Street.

“I saw a group of people walking by and all I said to the group of people was, ‘Hey, you having a good night?’ And then he hit me. So we started to scuffle, and then his friend hit me, too, and before I knew it, I was trying to fight two different people. By the time I ended up losing my footing and hit the ground, two of the girls came in and started kicking at me. Next thing I know, I’m waking up in an ambulance.”

Kempfer took photos of what happened to him, documenting his healing process.

Patrick Kempfer tells me he was brutally assaulted on State Street. He is sharing his story to bring awareness to the ongoing issues around the area, in hopes police and local government officials will act sooner to address the problems. #News3Now pic.twitter.com/ioHTVHwrPe

— Jamie Perez (@JamiePerezTV) September 24, 2019

“My nose was all the way over here. My jaw was kind of this way because of the two fractures right here. And now I have titanium plates right here and my nose is about as straight as it’s probably going to get,” he said.

Kempfer said he knows there have been ongoing issues on State Street. Being a victim to one of them was not in his plans, and said he feels police didn’t make it a part of theirs, either. He said the detective working on his case didn’t make contact with him until he reached out to her.

“Her response to me and why she hadn’t contacted me was because she didn’t have any valuable leads and she didn’t want to contact me and give me no information, which I thought was kind of interesting. A little unprofessional actually,” Kempfer said. “She claims that none of the city of Madison cameras got a good angle of the people that assaulted me and neither did the UW cameras.”

Madison police spokesperson Joel Despain said in a response, “A Central District detective is working hard on this very active case. She has interviewed witnesses and secured numerous pieces of video evidence. Following the suspects’ movements via surveillance images led her to additional places to look for video. Because of her due diligence, the detective has now secured good images of those thought to be responsible. These images have recently been distributed to all state law enforcement agencies. The detective has been in contact with the victim and is keeping him posted on developments in the case.”

Kempfer said his he hasn’t received those most recent updates, and believes his current life circumstances plays a part.

“Seeing me as a degenerate homeless person on the street rather than a UW student or somebody that resides down here, made this less of a priority,” he said.

Kempfer knows his assault isn’t the first and likely won’t be the last. He said he hopes police are able to find who did this to him, but in the end, wants this to be part of a bigger lesson for the community.

“If this can raise more awareness and more people can give a damn including the police and including the mayor,” he said.

Kempfer said he has found a permanent place to live since he was assaulted as a homeless man in August. He said his medical bills are expensive and is asking those who are willing to help him recover, to donate what they can through his GoFundMe page here.

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