Chief details events that led to officer-involved shooting: "Thankfully, mercifully, the officers are okay"
MILWAUKEE -- Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn spoke with the media on Tuesday morning, November 3rd to talk about Monday night's officer-involved shooting that happened near 34th and Auer. He held the news conference near the memorial to Milwaukee police officers killed in the line of duty. Flynn did that deliberately, he said, because Monday was the 78th anniversary of the murder of an officer killed while investigating a burglary by a gang from Chicago.
"We could have very easily had another murder of a police officer," said Flynn.
Chief Flynn told reporters, two MPD officers on bicycles were investigating a suspicious vehicle without license plates in an alley near 34th and Auer around 8:40 p.m. Monday when they found three suspects in the vehicle. One had a firearm in plain sight. The officers opened the door of the vehicle to question the individuals. At that point, one of the suspects fired at least one round at the officers. The officers returned fire wounding two of the suspects and apprehending a third suspect after a brief foot pursuit.
35th and Auer
Two handguns were retrieved from the suspect's vehicle as were drugs. The vehicle was a 2004 Infiniti which had been stolen in a southside burglary last month.
The suspects have been identified as two 17-year-old boys from Milwaukee and an 18-year-old man from West Allis.
Police-involved shooting near 34th and Auer
The first 17-year-old has previous arrests from 2014 for possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor and possession of a controlled substance. He has open cases. This 17-year-old is undergoing additional treatment for his wounds.
The second suspect, also 17 years old, was wounded but treated and released. Chief Flynn said he has a 2015 arrest for driving a vehicle without the owner's consent. The teen has an arrest record that extends back to 2011.
The third suspect, age 18 from West Allis, has a 2014 arrest record for armed robbery.
"We know they're bad guys. What their other involvements are, we don't know -- but it certainly fits a pattern that we've been developing which is: We've got armed criminals in stolen cars driving around this city committing robberies," Chief Flynn said.
Officer-involved shooting near 34th and Auer
The Milwaukee Police Department will be conducting this investigation. The Department of Justice responded to MPD's request for assistance. But officials determined the wounds in this case were not severe enough to warrant their involvement.
The officers are 42-years-old and 30-years-old with 11 and five years of service, respectively. Both men are assigned to MPD's District 7 and, as is protocol, have been placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the investigation.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett told reporters that the two officers in this case should be thanked by every single citizen of this community.
"These are officers who are trying to keep our city safe. And in trying to keep our city safe, they nearly lost their lives," said Barrett. "This underscores the dangerousness of the job that they perform. It underscores their commitment to this community."
Barrett emphasized, "They did not fire until they were fired upon."
"Thankfully, mercifully, both officers are okay," Chief Flynn said.
Chief Flynn later fielded questions from reporters and said, "We've already taken more than 2,000 guns off the street. If you pro-rate that compared to any American city, we'd be one of the leading cities in the country for finding illegal firearms. That continues to be a challenge for us."
Officer-involved shooting near 34th and Auer