Milwaukee fatal shooting; 18-year-old faces reckless homicide charge
Terrion Smith
MILWAUKEE - An 18-year-old Milwaukee man is accused of fatally shooting a person outside a business at North and Vel R. Phillips on May 21. The accused is Terrion Smith – and he faces a single charge of first-degree reckless homicide.
Fatal shooting in Milwaukee
What we know:
According to the criminal complaint, a Milwaukee police lieutenant was involved in police business near the intersection of North and Vel R. Phillips on the evening of Wednesday, May 21. While inside a building, the lieutenant "heard gunfire outside and heard someone call for him to go outside," the complaint says. The lieutenant left the building and found a man lying on the ground with an apparent gunshot wound. Life-saving measures were unsuccessful, and the shooting victim was pronounced deceased on the scene.
Scene near North and Vel R. Phillips, Milwaukee
Search for evidence
What we know:
Milwaukee police examined the scene relevant to the shooting and located "a .40 caliber Glock pistol, unloaded, with no magazine and no bullet in the chamber" near where the victim was located. A short distance away, investigators located "five spent 9mm cartridge casings, spread in a generally linear north-to-south arrangement," the complaint says. Lastly, in the parking lot of a Citgo gas station on the corner of North and Vel R. Phillips, there were "two spent .40 caliber cartridge casings on the pavement. There was a car parked in this area that had three bullet strikes to the passenger side and a deflated rear passenger tire," the complaint says.
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Later, a citizen came to the police station regarding this investigation and gave police a magazine for a handgun. The complaint says the citizen "was at the gas station when he saw what looked like two men shooting at each other. He saw one of them run away, and a white vehicle follow after the running man," the complaint says. Police later determined the magazine fits the .40 caliber Glock gun found by the victim's body.
Video footage obtained
Dig deeper:
Investigators obtained video footage from several cameras in the area. The videos show an exchange between the shooting victim and a passenger who got out of a Ford Escape.
Authorities later contacted the owner of the Ford Escape. The owner suspected her SUV had been used in a crime. Police interviewed the owner of the Escape. She indicated that "she had loaned it to the defendant, who returned it to her with bullet damage," the complaint says. The SUV owner identified the defendant by name and photo. She indicated to police that the defendant "apologized for the damage but did not explain the circumstances," the complaint says.
Milwaukee shootings Wednesday; 1 dead, 1 injured
One person is dead and another injured in different shootings in Milwaukee on Wednesday, May 21.
Detectives later interviewed the defendant. The complaint says Smith "admitted that he was the front passenger of the Escape and that he was the shooter. He made it seem like (the victim) was still shooting at them when he fired at him, which is inconsistent with the video, inconsistent with where the casings were recovered, and inconsistent with the gun found by the victim's body," the complaint says.
What's next:
Smith made his initial appearance in Milwaukee County court on Monday, June 23. Cash bond was set at $100,000.
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Smith is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on July 2.
The Source: The information in this post was provided by Wisconsin Circuit Court Access as well as the criminal complaint associated with this case.