MADISON, WI (AP)-- Seventeen Wisconsin State Patrol troopers sent to North Dakota to help disperse oil pipeline protesters aren't wearing name tags or numbers on their uniforms.
The Wisconsin State Journal reports the anonymity is intended to protect the officers but faces criticism from civil rights advocates.
Molly Collins of the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin says law enforcement shouldn't intimidate free-speech rights by covering up their name tags. She says it's an implicit threat that police will engage in practices for which they don't want to be held accountable.
Jim Palmer of the Wisconsin Professional Police Association says officers generally should wear name badges or unique identifying numbers. But he says there should still be adequate means for the Patrol to effectively identify and investigate any matter involving the troopers.
