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Two decades later, Madison first responders reflect on 9/11

Describing himself as a “young and impressionable” student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Lau was just shy of his 20th birthday at the time. The scene would move him to take action, altering the course of his career — and his entire life. He abandoned his initial plans to study business, instead taking courses in a field he’d never before considered: law and policing. After receiving his degree and completing the criminal justice certificate program in 2004, Lau got a job in the UW-Madison Police Department, where he’s worked for the past 17 years as an officer.