Woman killed at Milwaukee motel, man charged with homicide

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Lance White

MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee man is now charged with first-degree intentional homicide for the death of 29-year-old Alicia Machnik, who was shot at a motel on the city's northwest side earlier this month.

In court:

Court records show the man, 29-year-old Lance White, is scheduled to make his initial court appearance on Jan. 20.

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Appleton and Silver Spring

The backstory:

Milwaukee police were called to the Port Motel, on Appleton Avenue just south of Silver Spring, on the afternoon of Jan. 14. A criminal complaint said Machnik, a mother of two, was found dead with a gunshot wound to her head.

Court filings said police found a single bullet casing, along with one intact bullet that appeared to have blood on it in the room. Police also found numerous identifiers for White, including his birth certificate and social security card.

Alicia Machnik

What they're saying:

A motel cleaner said Machnik answered the door that morning, and she told him she would be staying an additional night, according to the complaint. The cleaner returned that afternoon, knocked on the door and, after hearing no response, went inside and found Machnik.

Surveillance video showed White and Machnik checked into the motel on the afternoon of Jan. 12. On the day of the homicide, surveillance video showed White left the room minutes after the cleaner was there in the morning. No one else was seen going in or out of the room until Machnik was found dead.

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Court filings said White and Machnik had been married for roughly one year. A family member said Machnik had "spiraled out of control ever since." That family member identified White and Machnik in the surveillance video.

Police also interviewed a man who said he was Machnik's boyfriend. The complaint said he told police they'd been dating "on and off" for the past five years. He said he knew Machnik had been staying "in and out of motels" with White, and he would send her money often. 

Motel near 97th and Appleton

White arrested

What we know:

One day after the homicide, detectives went to a different motel less than a half-mile away on Appleton Avenue. Court filings said an employee there said a man tried to rent a room but did not have identification and provided surveillance video that showed that man. A family member identified that man as White, and said she'd taken him to a hospital because he seemed "off" and was "disheveled and dirty."

Police arrested White at that hospital. The complaint said White told police he'd been in a relationship with Machnik for roughly one year, and they stayed in motels – most recently the Port Motel. He said they were "getting high together" when she told him to shoot her because "her child's father was getting out of prison in eleven months and was going to kill them." He then admitted he shot her in the head and left the room "in shock." He said he tossed the gun in a sewer and then went to a different motel.