A pregnant 18-year-old was shot by police in Wisconsin after a pursuit for carjackings, leaving her with “life-threatening injuries” and losing her baby.
On Thursday, June 20, police from the Milwaukee Police agency “attempted to conduct a felony stop” between N.17th Street and W. Vliet Street about 2:23 p.m. local time in connection with what the agency described on Facebook as two “armed robbery carjackings.”
During the pursuit on Interstate 43, the vehicle became “blocked by construction and a cement truck” in a construction lane. Officers ordered the suspects to depart, but the driver “reversed the vehicle, striking a marked squad car.”
“The suspect driver moved forward and then reversed his vehicle. An officer was stationed behind the car. At this point, another cop fired his weapon into the vehicle, striking two men. The vehicle carried six suspects, according to the announcement.
According to police, a 17-year-old teenager sustained “serious injuries,” and both injured suspects were “transported to local hospitals for treatment of their injuries.” Other suspects ranged in age from 15 to 18 and were treated for minor injuries. Milwaukee Police stated that the 25-year-old officer “involved” has four years of service and will be sent to “administrative duty,” which is “routine in an officer-involved shooting.”
According to the department’s Facebook release, a firearm was discovered from the vehicle, which was later determined to be stolen. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, citing a press conference by Police Chief Jeffrey Norman, it was unclear whether suspects had fired guns as of Thursday afternoon.
A local woman told ABC affiliate WISN at the scene that she “definitely heard shots,” but she didn’t know “who fired first.” “It was just a lot at once,” she explained. Norman stated that both carjacking victims were “OK” and occurred prior to the pursuit at the 500 block of N. Broadway and the 500 block of N. Jefferson Street.
“There are many young people in our city that engage in undesirable behavior. “This is unacceptable,” Norman told the Journal Sentinel. “Parents, what is happening with your children? People in our community, how are we assisting in keeping our children in positive behaviors rather than what we are seeing today?
“This should never have happened. … There are no winners in this particular situation,” said the man. “So I’m asking the community, let’s take our kids and embrace them in a positive way to engage in positive behaviors and not in these unacceptable behaviors we saw today.”
The department also stated that “criminal charges will be referred” to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, and that the Milwaukee Area Investigative Team is investigating the event, with the West Allis Police Department heading the “ongoing investigation.”
On Friday, the district attorney’s office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for more details.
According to police data, carjackings in the city climbed by 16% between 2022 and 2023, from 398 to 463 cases.