Tensions erupted overnight in Milwaukee after a reported fatal police-involved shooting.
While authorities have not released the race or identity of the victim, social media alleged that it was a 23-year-old black male. According to authorities, the man was shot twice, once in the arm and once in the chest. However, conflicting stories from local citizens suggest that the man was shot at least three times in the back.
According to police, the man fled from a stolen vehicle and was armed. “He (the officer) ordered that individual to drop his gun, the individual did not drop his gun,” Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said in a press release. “He had the gun with him and the officer fired several times.”
Within hours of the news breaking, citizens took to the streets. The crowd, initially estimated at around 100 people, smashed a police car and set fire to another. One gas station was set on fire, while a police officer was injured with a flying brick. Police also say they heard gunshots and there were reports of multiple properties being set on fire, including a bank.
Local authorities unleashed large armored vehicles throughout the neighborhood in an effort to “restore order.”
According to Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett, at least three arrests have been made as a result of the riots so far. Speaking to the media, he asked parents of anyone at scene of the rally to get them home right now. “If you love your son, if you love your daughter, text them, call them, pull them by the ears and get ’em home,” he said.
