Police identify man shot, killed by police at downtown transit center
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The armed suspect who was shot and killed after displaying threatening behavior towards Milwaukee Police officers at the Milwaukee County Transit Center on Monday, November 11th, has been identified as 17-year-old Shawn Rieves of Milwaukee.
Shawn Rieves
Police are still working to uncover why Rieves would not put down a semi-automatic handgun at the scene Monday morning -- leading to MPD's 10th officer-involved shooting incident this year.
According to police, the incident began around 7 a.m. Monday when Rieves approached a 56-year-old man in a car, pulled a gun and attempted to enter his vehicle through the locked, passenger door near the corner of Lincoln Memorial Dr. and E. Michigan.
Police say when the 56-year-old man drove away from the scene, Rieves fired his weapon at the vehicle. Following the incident, the 56-year-old man drove around the corner and called 911. He then circled the block to determine where Rieves went.
After police arrived on the scene, they spoke with the man in the car. That person gave officers a good description of the suspect.
A short time later, officers located the Rieves armed on the second floor of the transit center.
“The officers confronted him and made numerous demands for him to drop the weapon and attempted to negotiate with him. It was at this time the suspect engaged in threatening behavior with that pistol,” said Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn.
Chief Flynn said that’s when three officers fired upon Rieves. Following the shooting, officers began life-saving measures. However, Rieves was pronounced dead at the scene.
Three Milwaukee police officers were involved in the altercation. They are all from MPD’s District 1. One of the officers is a 35-year-old man with 16 years of experience. The second is a 37-year-old man with 11 years on the force. The third officer is a 41-year-old man with 21 years of experience.They have all been placed on administrative duty pending the investigation.
Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn mentioned at a media briefing on Monday that the investigation would include a review of surveillance video from the transit center. The investigation has revealed the center's surveillance video system was not operational at the time of the incident.
A spokesman for Milwaukee County says the cameras inside the transit center have not been working since the late 1990s, when someone apparently made a decision that it wasn't worth the money to upgrade the technology in a building that was not often used.
The Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office says it is reviewing the case, waiting for the Medical Examiner's report and more police reports. They will then meet with the suspect's family.
The District Attorney's Office says it is several weeks out from a decision as to whether the shooting was justified.
A Milwaukee County official says Rieves has no criminal record in Milwaukee -- even as a juvenile.
The suspect's family did not want to speak with FOX6 News on Tuesday. A Facebook page believed to belong to Rieves' brother expresses grief.
On YouTube, there are music videos posted involving Rieves -- and his social media sites feature them as well.
Someone who knows Rieves wrote to FOX6 News, saying "He was a cool kid. People can't believe he's dead. I can't believe it. Why?"
If Rieves was pointing a gun at police, especially after firing a shot moments before, his age would not play a factor in this case, according to Milwaukee police.