Darwin Turner
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee County prosecutors accuse a man of hitting a pedestrian in a stolen car and fleeing the scene, setting that car on fire and, weeks later, leading police on a chase with a baby in his vehicle.
In Court:
Court records show 24-year-old Darwin Turner is charged with five felonies and a misdemeanor in the case. He's being held in the Milwaukee County Jail on $15,000 cash bond, and he's due back in court on Sept. 11.
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Hit-and-run
The backstory:
Milwaukee police were called about a hit-and-run on the night of Aug. 13. A 63-year-old pedestrian was hit while crossing the street at 33rd and Vliet. A criminal complaint said the victim was taken to a hospital and treated for compound fractures and a subdural hematoma, among other injuries.
Milwaukee Police Department (MPD)
Surveillance video captured the hit-and-run. Court filings said it showed two people getting out of a gray Kia and going into a gas station at 33rd and Vliet. A short time later, they left the store and got back into the Kia. They then pulled out onto Vliet Street and hit the victim, turned around and pulled up to the victim's body as people gathered to help the victim. The Kia then sped away, and the driver made no attempt to leave any information or help the victim.
Prosecutors said police checked Wisconsin Department of Transportation records and found the license plate on the gray Kia was instead listed to an Acura owned by Turner. Police then compared surveillance video to a DOT photo, identifying Turner as the driver of the Kia when it hit the victim.
Stolen car fire
The backstory:
The complaint said, roughly two hours after the hit-and-run, police were called to a car fire. The gray Kia was found on fire near 29th and State, less than a mile from the hit-and-run scene, now with no license plates attached.
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Based on the fire damage, court filings said detectives determined "the fire was set on purpose." Surveillance video from the area showed the gray Kia pull into an alley. One person tried to light the inside of the car on fire while another person removed the license plates. Those involved then left the scene in a second vehicle.
Four people returned an hour later to examine the car, per the complaint, and it was clear it did not fully start on fire. The people were seen setting the car on fire a second time before leaving. Police were called roughly 20 minutes later.
Court filings said the gray Kia had been reported stolen in December 2024.
Police chase
The backstory:
Police went to look for Turner in the area of the stolen car fire on Aug. 29. Prosecutors said officers spotted him driving an Acura with the license plates that had been affixed to the Kia at the time of the hit-and-run.
An officer tried to stop the car, but the complaint said Turner "looked directly" at the officers "started yelling, and sped away." It led to a chase that reached speeds greater than 90 mph and stretched nearly four miles.
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During the chase, court filings said Turner ran multiple red lights and caused a crash near 35th and Burnham. Turner stopped driving near 36th and Becher, got out and ran. Officers ordered him to stop, but he climbed onto the roof of a garage and then jumped onto the roof of a second garage. He was ultimately taken into custody.
Police searched the car and found Turner's 1-year-old child in the back seat, per the complaint.
Prosecutors said Turner admitted he fled police with his child in the car. He "invoked the right to counsel" after he was shown a picture from the gas station surveillance just prior to the hit-and-run.
The Source: FOX6 News referenced information from the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office and Wisconsin Circuit Court.