Former Milwaukee police officer charged with homicide for shooting that set off violent unrest
By Mark Berman December 15 at 1:47 PM
A former police officer in Milwaukee was charged with homicide Thursday for fatally shooting a man in August, an incident that sparked days of violent unrest on the city’s streets.
Authorities said that while Sylville K. Smith was initially armed during his encounter with police,
he had thrown his gun away and fallen to the ground when an officer fired a shot into his chest.
Dominique Heaggan-Brown, the officer, is already facing charges of sexual assault and prostitution stemming from accusations made while demonstrations over Smith’s shooting continued to roil Milwaukee. Heaggan-Brown, 24, was arrested in October on those charges and, not long after, fired by the Milwaukee Police Department.
Heaggan-Brown fatally shot Smith, 23, after an August traffic stop in the city’s Sherman Park neighborhood. Police said Smith was chased by Heaggan-Brown and had turned to face the officer while holding a gun.
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While city officials were trying to restore calm after the shooting, authorities were contacted by a man who told them that Heaggan-Brown had raped him.
According to court documents, the man who made the report told investigators that he had gone to a bar with Heaggan-Brown, where they “sat and watched television as coverage of the Sherman Park protests aired.” This man told police he had difficulty remembering what happened after leaving the bar and said he woke up being assaulted, the criminal complaint states.
When authorities began investigating this report, they discovered evidence that Heaggan-Brown had tried to offer two people money for sex, according to the complaint. Investigators also say they found images on his phone showing nude photos of another person, some showing sexual contact, but this person told police they did not consent to the photos or contact.
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If convicted, Heaggan-Brown could face up to 60 years in prison. No defense attorney was initially listed for him.
more:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/12/15/former-milwaukee-police-officer-charged-with-homicide-in-shooting-that-set-off-violent-unrest/?hpid=hp_hp-more-top-stories_pn-milwaukee-230pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&utm_term=.6b0702676fec
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