Milwaukee 4-year-old boy fatally shot; father found guilty at trial

MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee County jury on Thursday convicted Ralph Taylor in the fatal shooting of his 4-year-old son. 

Taylor, 35, was found guilty at trial of first-degree intentional homicide and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Taylor is due back in court for a sentencing hearing on April 23. 

Charges in the case

What we know:

Charges were filed Monday, July 14, 2025, against 35-year-old Ralph Taylor and 33-year-old Casandra Taylor, the parents of 4-year-old Ralph Taylor III. 

According to Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, Ralph Taylor was charged with first-degree intentional homicide and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Casandra Taylor was charged with neglecting a child (consequence is death) and straw purchasing of a firearm. 

Complaint details

Dig deeper:

The crime unfolded at an apartment near 75th and Northridge Lakes in Milwaukee on Thursday night, July 10, 2025.

According to the criminal complaint, Milwaukee police were dispatched to the residence around 9:30 p.m. When officers arrived, they were met by several people yelling for help, indicating that a child was shot. On the third floor of the residence, they found the 4-year-old just inside the doorway of a bedroom on the third floor. Despite life-saving efforts by police and the Milwaukee Fire Department, the child, Ralph Taylor III, was pronounced deceased on the scene.

When police initially spoke with defendant Ralph Taylor, he said he was on the phone when he heard a gunshot. Taylor "claimed the gunshot must have come from outside and entered the bedroom through an open third story window. Ralph Taylor told (an officer) there were no weapons or firearms inside the residence," the complaint says. The complaint says the subsequent investigation "would establish that Ralph Taylor lied about all of the surrounding circumstances surrounding how his own four-year-old son...was shot," the complaint says.

In an interview not long after the initial one, the complaint says Ralph Taylor told another officer "that he was texting with his wife while (the 4-year-old) was jumping on a mattress. Ralph Taylor heard a gunshot and observed (the child) fall to the floor. Again, Ralph Taylor claimed that the gunshot must have come through an open third-story window to the residence and struck (the child)," the complaint says.

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A detective interviewed a witness on Thursday. She told police she "checked her Ring camera and observed Casandra Taylor, the mother of (the 4-year-old), outside screaming, 'my son, my son, somebody shot my son through the window!'" the complaint says. When the witness went outside and approached Casandra Taylor, Taylor asked the witness to go upstairs and check on her son. She and another neighbor went into the residence and spotted Ralph Taylor holding the child and screaming. As the second neighbor was administering CPR to the child, the complaint says Ralph Taylor said, 'I got to hide my guns.'"

When the first witness left the residence, the complaint says Casandra Taylor approached her and asked her to hold Taylor's purse for her. The witness was "concerned that the purse had a gun inside and refused to hold the purse," the complaint says. The witness said another neighbor took the purse -- and when that neighbor "checked the purse, there was a gun inside," the complaint says.

Evidence located at scene

What we know:

A Milwaukee police detective was placed in charge of the scene investigation. The detective reported that a Glock semi-automatic handgun was "recovered wrapped inside of two plastic bags in a large Rubbermaid storage container inside a closet located on the third floor" of the residence. The complaint says the "gun had suspected blood on the grip and slide. Inside the same Rubbermaid container there was a Crown Royal bag that contained 96 rounds of 9mm ammunition." Located on the floor of the bedroom where the child was shot, investigators found a single 9mm round, "which would be consistent with a person ejecting the round from a gun to clear the chamber," the complaint says.

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Interview of Ralph Taylor

What they're saying:

On July 11, Milwaukee police detectives conducted an interview with Ralph Taylor. The complaint says he initially provided the same response he gave to police on the scene -- that the child had been struck by someone who fired a shot through an open window. About an hour and 13 minutes into the interview, Taylor provided a new version of events, claiming his gun was under a pillow and he never saw the child go underneath the pillows, "but he was behind me and my back was to him. I heard the shot," the complaint says.

Before confronting Ralph Taylor with the inconsistencies in this latest version of events, a detective asked what an argument with Casandra Taylor was about. Taylor "admitted that he and Casandra Taylor were arguing over his lack of taking care of (the child)," the complaint says. After the shooting, Taylor "claimed that he put the Glock back underneath the pillows because 'I am a felon,'" the complaint says.