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MPD data: 13 children fatally shot in 2025
A 13-year-old in Milwaukee is dead after a shooting police are calling "unintentional" and neighbors say this is just another tragic reminder of the dangers of unsecured firearms.
MILWAUKEE - A 13-year-old in Milwaukee is dead after a shooting police are calling "unintentional."
The fatal shooting happened shortly after 8 p.m. near 32nd and Vliet on Wednesday, July 16.
Milwaukee shootings Wednesday; 1 dead, 1 injured
One teen was killed and another person was injured in different shootings in Milwaukee on Wednesday.
Detectives say the suspect was negligently handling a firearm when the teen was shot and killed.
Local perspective:
Joyce Elm lives several houses down.
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"A life is life but to have a child shot," neighbor Joyce Elm said. "An ambulance came and then a coroner. That’s when it really starts to hit you and you know for sure what happened. They blocked the roads off for four and a half hours.
A 14-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy were taken into custody. Charges will be reviewed by the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office.
"They were sitting in the car across the street with the door open and they were just sobbing. And I couldn’t handle it no more," Elm said. "I’d been crying too."
By the numbers:
Year-to-date data from the Milwaukee Police Department shows there have been more children killed by firearms this year than last year.
The new data shows 13 juvenile firearm-related homicides so far this year. That's up from 10 in the same time period in 2024.
Additionally, 42 children have been shot so far this year, non-fatally. Last year at this time, 48 had survived shootings.
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In total, 93 kids survived shootings in 2024. That number is down from 130 in 2023.
What they're saying:
Neighbors say this is just another tragic reminder of the dangers of unsecured firearms.
"Don’t even attempt playing with one because they are not a toy and it’s a life you can’t take back," Elm said. "Lord, help us, something has to be done. Too much violence in the city."
At a crime meeting on Wednesday, July 16, MPD reminded people to safely secure their firearms with gun locks.
The Source: The information in this post was collected and produced by FOX6 News.