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Milwaukee February police shooting, no charges
Prosecutors cleared Milwaukee officers in a February shooting that killed an armed man and wounded an officer, as newly released records detail the suspect’s drug use and erratic behavior.
MILWAUKEE - Prosecutors have cleared two Milwaukee police officers of wrongdoing in the February shooting that left a man with a rifle dead and one officer wounded.
What we know:
The Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office said last week the use of force by Officers Daniel Gonzalez and Joseph Binter was justified during the Feb. 12 encounter near North 27th Street and West Wisconsin Avenue. Newly released records outline the moments leading up to the shooting and detail the suspect’s history of drug use and erratic behavior.
On body camera video, Gonzalez and his partner exit their squad as 24-year-old Isaiah Stott levels a rifle at Gonzalez.
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Gonzalez can be heard running northbound before gunfire erupts.
Investigators say Gonzalez was shot after raising his shotgun, and Binter then fired, killing Stott. Prosecutors said Stott fired at least 13 rounds at officers during the encounter.
Less than 24 hours earlier, police had contact with Stott after he went to a church near 76th Street and Mill Road. A specialized crisis team was called, but Milwaukee police said no firearm was found and Stott did not meet the criteria for an involuntary mental health commitment.
Dig deeper:
Newly released records also show concerns dating back to Stott’s time in the U.S. Marine Corps. Service records indicate he enlisted in 2018 and worked in a logistics regiment at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, without deploying overseas.
In February 2020, records describe Stott acting erratically in the barracks, smashing items and later being found bleeding. He admitted to taking LSD obtained from other Marines.
Stott was disciplined, reduced in rank and later discharged that year, in what family members described to investigators as a psychiatric breakdown.
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In the weeks leading up to the shooting, Stott’s family told investigators they were worried about his behavior, psychedelic drug use, religious fixation and access to weapons, but said they never believed he was capable of the violence that unfolded on a snowy February day.
The Source: Information in this report is from the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office and Wisconsin Circuit Court.