Milwaukee Sherman Park shooting; teen accused, faces charges
Tyler Ward
MILWAUKEE - A 17-year-old Milwaukee boy is accused of firing shots at a crowded Sherman Park on Tuesday, July 25. The accused is Tyler Ward – and he faces the following criminal counts:
- First-degree reckless injury
- First-degree recklessly endangering safety
- Bail jumping (felony)
- Possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18
According to the criminal complaint, Milwaukee County sheriff's deputies were dispatched to Sherman Park around 9 p.m. on Tuesday, July 25 for a fight and shots fired call. "There were also multiple ShotSpotter alerts inside the park," the complaint says.
When the deputies go to the park, they found a person "running towards them asking for help because he'd been shot," the complaint says. Deputies also located 30 unspent casings in the grass to the west of the playground.
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Deputies later interviewed the shooting victim. He indicated he was at the park with his brother to shoot dice. The complaint says the victim "noticed four Black males arrive at Sherman Park with ski masks on and two of them were armed with firearms." The victim stated a group of females started to fight at which point the two armed males started shooting. That is when the victim realized he was shot.
Teen shot near Sherman Park in Milwaukee
The complaint says the victim identified the defendant, Tyler Ward, as being at the park, but did not see him shooting.
Deputies were contacted by an employee of St. Charles Youth Services who "stated that the defendant had stated that he was shooting at Sherman Park the night of the shooting," the complaint says.
Teen shot near Sherman Park in Milwaukee
Ward was arrested and interviewed. He stated there was a group of girls fighting -- and a group of Black males "preventing people from interfering and armed with guns. The defendant stated the four Black males then started shooting at another group of youths in the park. The defendant stated his friend tossed him a Glock 17 with an extended magazine, and he started shooting at the group of males with masks even though they were shooting at another group. The defendant indicated he fired 3 times," the complaint says. Ward said "he shot before he didn't know the Black males in the mask and because he was scared," the complaint says. Ward also said there were about 300 people in the park when he shot, "and he didn't think he hit anyone."
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Ward made his initial appearance in Milwaukee County court on Saturday, July 29. Cash bond was set at $20,000.