One of the rioters said they rioted because this man was ‘respected’. Put that together with the information in this report about witness intimidation charge, the gang sign and gun carrying, and it screams gang. And that’s why people were rioting, not for ‘justice’, but because he was their ‘boy’, someone takes out one in your gang, you try to hurt them in response. He had a stolen gun, police allegedly ordered him to drop it twice and he did not.
The man shot and killed by a Milwaukee police officer Saturday was charged last year in a shooting and then charged again, with trying to intimidate a witness in that same shooting, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has learned.
The man shot by police was 23-year-old Sylville Smith, police sources and Smith’s family told the Journal Sentinel.
Smith was charged with first-degree recklessly endangering safety and with witness intimidation, but the charges were dismissed, court records show.
The charges were dropped even though the prosecutors had recorded jail calls in which Smith asked his girlfriend to pressure the victim to recant, according to court records.
In the witness intimidation case, Smith was accused of pressuring the victim in a shooting to recant a statement identifying him as the suspect, according to the criminal complaint.
Prosecutors with the Milwaukee County district attorney’s office were not immediately available Sunday to explain why the charges were dismissed.
Milwaukee police say Smith was armed when he fled a traffic stop about 3:30 p.m. Saturday near W. Auer Ave. and N. 44th St. The officer ordered Smith to drop his gun and when he did not, the officer fired and wounded the man in the chest and arm, according to preliminary information provided by Mayor Tom Barrett.
HT: Daily Dish