At least 11 young people were shot in Milwaukee in 2 weeks

A 12-year-old boy was shot dead in Milwaukee. On the same day, a 17-year-old boy was shot dead in his own living room.

Both shootings happened on October 26 and were part of a surge in firearms targeting city residents under the age of 21. In all, Milwaukee police said nine more people have been shot and wounded since Oct. 14, making 10 of the 26 shootings, with five killings of people of all ages.

“It certainly seems like a lot, and it’s surprising,” said Ashanti Hamilton, director of the city’s Office of Public Health and Safety. “As schooling and social media interactions take place, we are seeing an increase in youth shootings.”

The shooting comes at an unexpected time for officials, as violent crime typically begins — and despite these recent shootings — drops after the summer. Milwaukee officials mostly said they were appalled by the shooting and said it showed an escalating dynamic among youth over social media, with the availability of guns making situations more dangerous.

The mothers of the two youths who died — 12-year-old Markelle Newbern and 17-year-old Monte Edmond — could not be reached for comment by the Journal Sentinel. In the Newbern case, Milwaukee police said Saturday they had taken the 15-year-old into custody.

Edmond’s death was initially called a murder, the police took the 26-year-old into custody. However, a police spokesman said Thursday that the shooting was in self-defense and no longer appears in police shooting records.

Alderman Russell Stamper II, whose district was where Newbern died, urged parents to take more responsibility for their children’s lives and know where they spend their time.

“We’re trying to provide as many resources as possible to our youth, and I think the focus should be on the young people and connecting them to their mentors and their parents,” he said. “Of course there are too many guns on the street. I like working within our parameters, our local resources, our mentoring groups.”

Hamilton said some of the shootings in the past week and earlier this year have been the result of animosity fueled on social media, and things like further intimidation of victims’ family members have sparked their violent response.

This is impressive because it is happening at a time when the crime rate is steadily decreasing as it peaked in 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. Crime continued this trend this year, with quarterly declines in most violent categories.

In general, police data shows that non-fatal shootings are down 23% from last year and homicides are down 22% regardless of age range.

In early October, officials reported that a group of crimes known as Part 1 crimes, including murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary and vehicle theft, were down 4% from the previous year.

However, crime is still above pre-pandemic levels. Before the Milwaukee murder pandemic decreased for three years in a row and a total of 101 in 2018. As of October 30, Milwaukee had 113 murders.

“I would say we’ve seen a steady decline over the last two years, but one of the challenges is that we’ve seen more egregious things,” Hamilton said. “The types of things that go beyond just reactionary anger. Instead, the level of trauma that causes is actually what we really want to curb. That’s the challenge we have now.”

Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said social media feuds and aggravations are nothing new to Milwaukee. However, he said access to guns creates situations where these feuds turn violent.

He said the city’s youth gain access to guns through negligent owners, whether it’s parents who don’t keep guns at home or during burglaries when someone sees a gun in a parked car on the street.

“These young people are not going to your local store to buy a firearm. There is so much carelessness here,” Norman said.

Alderman Charlene Moore agreed that the recent number of shootings has been staggering. She said Milwaukee County’s recent announcement of a new gun violence prevention initiative is one way to combat gun violence in the city.

This program is called Advance Peace this is an 18-month fellowship which includes things like creating a life plan, three daily check-ins with mentors with similar life experiences, and offers a monthly stipend for regular members. The program targets people between the ages of 14 and 24 who have committed or been victims of gun violence. Officials said it has had success in other cities.

Other programs have also received other funding in recent months to help fight guns.

In October, the Ujima Project, a Wisconsin Children’s program that connects teenagers affected by shootings with services to help them heal physically and mentally, received a $100,000 grant from the Everytown Community Safety Fund. The Security Fund is a national initiative that helps fund anti-violence community organizations working on the front lines of the gun violence epidemic in the United States.

“When we’re talking about the gun violence that’s happening here in the city, we absolutely need to have some targeted strategies,” Moore said. “There needs to be a multi-layered approach to how we address this issue of gun violence, especially among youth.”

Norman said it’s important to teach youth better conflict resolution skills to avoid it in the future.

“My answer has always been that with any of our crime numbers, one is too many,” said the city’s top cop. “I’m not looking at it from a high level or a low level, I’m looking at how we can make a difference.”

Where to find free gun locks

All Milwaukee fire stations and medical centers operated by the Milwaukee Health Department also distribute free gun locks. Handbooks for fire stations and health centers available online

Milwaukee Unified District Center1609 W. North Ave.

The city on the mountain2224 W. Kilbourn Ave., during outreach events on the second Saturday of each month.

Milwaukee Christian Center807 S. 14th St, at its buffet, which is open from 1 to 3 p.m., Monday through Thursday.

Milwaukee Neighborhood House2819 W. Richardson Place.

Neu-Life Community Development2014 W. North Ave.

The center of the Silver Spring neighborhood5460 N 64th St.

COA Youth and Family Centers909 E. Garfield Ave. and 2320 W. Burleigh St.

Northcott Neighborhood House2460 N. Sixth St.

House travel2110 W. Scott St.

David Clary can be contacted at [email protected].