Milwaukee ex-cop who fatally shot Sylville Smith found not guilty
Photo courtesy of YouTube.
Photo courtesy of YouTube.
Dominique Heaggan-Brown, the ex-Milwaukee, Wisconsin police officer who shot and killed Sylville Smith during a chase last August, was found not guilty of first-degree reckless homicide earlier this evening.
The jury made its judgment after two days of deliberation.
The Syville Smith shooting, and the two days of protests, was one of the biggest stories in Milwaukee last year. Smith was armed when he was being chased and then shot by Heaggan-Brown. The prosecution even argued that the initial shot, which hit Smith in the arm, was justified.
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However, after being shot, Smith threw the gun and rolled to the ground. That's when Heaggan-Brown shot Smith again, this time in the chest, killing him in the process. Heaggan-Brown was wearing a body cam.
The prosecution argued that Smith was defenseless and “looked like a child” at the moment when he was killed. While the defense argued that Heaggan-Brown had to make a quick decision in the heat of the moment.
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David Owens, an attorney representing Smith’s family, released a statement after the verdict:
“This is an extremely distressing moment. The jury’s verdict is obviously shocking and troubling.”
Right around the time the verdict was reached, the Smith family filed a civil lawsuit against the city of Milwaukee and Heaggan-Brown.
Heaggan-Brown isn't totally out of the clear. He was fired from the force in October 2016 after two men said he sexually assaulted them, while two others said he solicited sex from them. Heaggan-Brown is still fighting those sexual assault charges.
Heaggan-Brown is the second police officer to be acquitted in a controversial shooting in the last week. A couple of days ago Jeronimo Yanez was acquitted in the death of Philando Castile.
SOURCE: Washington Post
