Whitefish Bay residents caught off-guard by officer-involved shooting: "It's safe and very peaceful here"

WHITEFISH BAY -- Law enforcement officials on Monday, July 13th were on the scene of an officer-involved shooting in the quiet suburb of Whitefish Bay. The incident caused some in the area to panic -- fearing for their safety.

It happened near the intersection of Kent Avenue and Lancaster Avenue, shortly before 6:00 p.m.



Whitefish Bay Police Chief Michael Young said at the scene Monday night that a 39-year-old man was shot and injured by a nine-year veteran Whitefish Bay police officer. We're told the 39-year-old man was armed with "multiple knives."

The man was taken to the hospital via Flight for Life.

FOX6 News learned on Tuesday the man has been released from the hospital -- but police are sharing few other details about the investigation.

Many who live in Whitefish Bay were caught off-guard by what happened Monday.

"It's safe and very peaceful here," Ben Zhu said.

But on Monday evening, police were called out to a home in the area by a family living there regarding trouble with the 39-year-old man.

Officers quickly responded, and Chief Young said they encountered the man, armed with "multiple knives."

An officer shot at the man, and struck him.

Neighbors tell FOX6 News they heard someone yell 'get down on the ground' -- and then they heard three gunshots.

Zhu said his first thought was the safety of his family. The officer-involved shooting happened yards away from his home.

"We were playing in the backyard in a pool with our kids. All of a sudden, one of our friends, she saw a police officer step out of his car. She yelled at us, 'he`s bringing out his gun.' Then I heard three gunshots. Immediately  hid our kids in the garage, and everybody ducked down," Zhu said.

Chief Young said officers were on scene within about two minutes of getting that initial call from family regarding trouble with the 39-year-old man, but the situation escalated just as quickly.

"We all thought maybe there was some bad guy there and thought the officer was trying to protect us," Zhu said.

The officer involved in this incident has been placed on administrative duty, as is protocol in these situations.

The Milwaukee Police Department is handling this investigation. Per state law, an outside agency must investigate all officer-involved deaths.