A Water Street shooting broke out after a wild police chase involving a homicide suspect.
There was an officer-involved shooting on Water Street in downtown Milwaukee late Friday/early Saturday after a wild police pursuit of a fleeing homicide suspect, according to videos and sources. The homicide suspect, Ernest Blakney, is dead, and at least one female bystander was shot and wounded, sources say.
This video captures a massive barrage of gunfire breaking out after multiple squad cars chased a truck down Water Street.
Multiple shots fired on Water Street in Milwaukee tonight. Everyone please be safe and share with anyone in the city. pic.twitter.com/QhXaQh2aSQ
— sam (@samlister222) September 3, 2022
Sources tell us the homicide suspect was Ernest Terrell Blakney, the Milwaukee man wanted for the murder of his ex-girlfriend and for setting his house on fire. He had been released on $5,000 bail in a sex abuse case.
“Cops did an amazing job on this,” a source told Wisconsin Right Now.
Wisconsin Right Now was first to break the news around 1 a.m. early Saturday morning. Milwaukee Police later released a statement. “On Friday, September 2, 2022, at approximately 10:50 p.m., Milwaukee Police officers observed a vehicle and a suspect on the 2200 block of W. National Avenue, that was wanted in connection to a homicide. Officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop; however, the driver refused to stop and a vehicle pursuit ensued,” they wrote.
“The pursuit ended when the vehicle became disabled on 100 block of E. Juneau Avenue, at which time, the suspect exited the vehicle and fired several shots at officers. Several officers discharged their firearms, subsequently striking the suspect. An uninvolved bystander was also struck. No other community members or officers were struck by the gunfire.”
Police noted: “The suspect, a 47-year-old Milwaukee man, sustained fatal injuries. His firearm was recovered. The bystander, a 22-year-old Hudson, Wisconsin woman, was transported to a local hospital for treatment of non-fatal injuries. At this time, it is unknown who’s gunfire struck the woman.”
Eight officers were involved:
A 47-year-old male officer with over 4 years of service.
Two 33-year-old male officers with over 3 years of service.
A 31-year-old male officer with over 12 years of service.
A 30-year-old male officer with over 5 years of service.
A 26-year-old male officer with over 4 years of service.
A 23-year-old male officer with over 5 years of service.
A 22-year-old male officer with over 4 years of service.
“They will be placed on administrative duty as is routine in officer involved critical incidents,” police said. “This is a fluid and ongoing investigation. The Milwaukee Area Investigative Team will be investigating this incident. The Oak Creek Department will be the lead law enforcement agency in the investigation.”
Another video also captures the massive volley of gunfire. Be forewarned that some of the language is graphic. The video can also be found here.
Sources tell Wisconsin Right Now that police were chasing the fleeing homicide suspect for some time. No officers were injured. Sources say the chase lasted about a half hour and involved the suspect shooting at officers as he drove, at times on rims. The female bystander who was shot was frequenting a popular local bar at the time, sources say. There are conflicting reports about whether one, or two, female bystanders were injured by bullets.
Sources say the suspect is dead following the officer-involved shooting. The female bystander was shot in arm by gunfire and was taken to Froedtert.
The carnage downtown is in the same general area where multiple shootings broke out last summer. Wisconsin Right Now was there to capture some of them, as undermanned police officers courageously put themselves in harm’s way without proper staffing from higher-ups.
