Milwaukee Uprising: Sylville Smith Identified As Man Shot By Officer
UPDATE:Reports have revealed the identity of last Saturday's police shooting asSylville Smith. The 23-year-old who was fatally shot by Milwaukee police, triggered explosive protests on the city's north side. There has been debate over Smith's arrest record, plus with the state being an open-carry environment people are concerned if Milwaukee PD went overboard with their behavior. Mildred Haynes, Sylville's mother, wondered out loud if the shooting was unjustified.
Brother of Sylville Smith with his conceal carry permit. (via @journalsentinel) #Milwaukeepic.twitter.com/FvD9a0J5yX
Ninjas for Health (@ninjasforhealth) August 14, 2016
"It ain't us, it's the police. This is the madness they spark up." - Brother of #SylvilleSmith. #MilwaukeeUprisingpic.twitter.com/oorqFNoItK
D (@Delo_Taylor) August 14, 2016
Milwaukee's police chief said that the officer who shot Smith was also black, and that Smith fled during a traffic stop and was armed. It is unclear whether he pointed a gun at officers. Enraged at the police, a man claiming to be Sylville Smith's brother took to social media to show off Sylville's open-carry permit, and to admonish the police for the death of the 23-year-old father of a two-year-old. On the #BlueLivesMatter side of things, Milwaukee PD are offering a thinly veiled justification of Sylville Smith's killing, saying that the man "might have been" armed.
They were also quick to note that the man had an arrest record.
The original story is below.
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Milwaukee police are known to have gunned down multiple people in the past.Austin Howard,49,Burt T. Johnson,38,Tyrone Ryerson Lawrence,45,Dontre Hamilton,31,Cornelius Turner,19,Shawn M. Rieves,17,Donnell Carter,39,Chris G. Nowicki,46, andJames Coleman,24, have all been killed by Milwaukee police in recent years.The officers involved in the most recent killing and chase were not harmed. In recent days, racial tensions in the U.S. have been strained as a rash of police terror, disproportionatelydirected on black communities, has gained renewed visibility via social media. This is of course compounded upon a legacy of exploitation, centuries of oppressive and exclusionary policies and legitimized state and racist vigilante violence.
After the killing, and calls for protests via social media, demonstratorsgathered near the spot where the 23 year-old Milwaukee resident was gunned downto express their dismay. The city's armed security forces, some in riot gear, met the protesters, in an attempt to disperse them. Some demonstratorsflung debris at the heavily armed police force.As the police force left, unsuccessful, some protesters set fire to structures including an unoccupied police vehicle, smashing the windows of another.Some of the buildings burned were an O'Reilly Auto Parts store, a BMO Harris bank branch, and a BP gas station.The uprising had dwindled down by around midnight. The Mayor of Milwaukee,Tom Barrett, and other city leaders, made comments calling for calm at a news conference concerning the uprising and police killing last night. Barrett confirmed that police were wearing body cameras. Watch footage of the Mayor's comments below.
We'll update as more information becomes available. Scroll down for pictures and videos via Twitter of last night's events.
H/T: Chicago Tribune