MILWAUKEE — The parents of a homicide victim are disturbed by the details of a 14-year-old Milwaukee boy’s alleged crime spree in the weeks leading up to a deadly crash.
Zy'kevious Joshua-Alexander is charged in adult court for allegedly hitting and killing motorcyclist Marc Jones three months ago while fleeing police in Walker’s Point.
Our Lighthouse team learned the teen is charged with dozens of additional felonies in Children’s Court for a string of armed robberies and other violent crimes.
Lighthouse journalist Ben Jordan shared his findings with the crash victim’s parents. Marsha and Russ Jones say it raises questions about whether the Milwaukee County justice system failed their son.
“My son was having a good time with his friends,” Marsha said. “They were on their way to eat dinner. They were going to eat some dinner.”
Watch: Victim’s parents furious after learning about 14-year-old’s alleged crime spree
Marsha and Russ find peace in a room full of pictures. Each one tells a story about their son Marc, from childhood memories to the night he died.
“I can’t even describe the pain,” Russ said. “It’s something I wouldn’t wish on anybody.”
Marc was riding his motorcycle on his way to Harley Fest with friends on July 27 when he was blindsided by a driver who ran a stoplight at high speeds.
“He didn’t just take one life. He took pieces of a thousand lives because Marc knew a lot of people and loved all of them,” Marsha said.
Surveillance video from 1st and Walker shows Marc’s motorcycle sliding across the street after the crash. Seconds later, another camera angle shows two teens jumping out of the passenger door while the car is still moving.
“The video that I’ve seen, that’s the last time he was alive,” Marsha said. “Then my mind starts playing the rest of the video.”
Court documents say the surveillance video helped police identify who was behind the wheel: 14-year-old Zykevious Joshua-Alexander.
Court records show Joshua-Alexander admitted he was the driver and that he and a friend committed a robbery and fled from police in a stolen car just minutes before the crash.
Russ and Marsha were devastated to learn what had happened months earlier.
Watch: 14-year-old allegedly involved in crime spree before being involved in deadly crash.
Court records show Joshua-Alexander was released to his home in May after being detained for eight months for previous felony crimes.
Less than a week later, court records show he removed his GPS tracking device and ran away.
“When he took that off, it should have been like a snap of the fingers,” said Russ. “They should have been looking for him, and hard.”
While on the loose, prosecutors say the teen and an accomplice committed a dozen armed robberies, stole at least four vehicles, and allegedly shot a girl in the face near McGovern Park. In total, Joshua-Alexander faces 24 felony charges in children’s court for the alleged crime spree.
Court records say Milwaukee police chased Joshua-Alexander after one of those armed robberies, but the pursuit was called off due to high speeds in a residential neighborhood.
Court documents show he wasn’t arrested until a few days after allegedly killing Jones—and two and a half months after he went missing.
“I don’t feel he had the pressure he should have had,” Russ said.
Russ and Marsha say they can’t believe a teen accused of such serious crimes could elude police for so long.
“Who do you think dropped the ball here?” reporter Ben Jordan asked.
“Multiple, probably,” Russ replied. "If they would have pursued it hard, even for a lengthy time of a month, and found him, these other things wouldn't have happened."
Now, they hope all of the charges Joshua-Alexander faces are prosecuted in adult court.
"He changed our life forever, so his life should be changed forever too,” Marsha said. “And just not ours. Many others."
Not only do the Jones want justice for their son, but they also want the same for the other 17 victims of the alleged crime spree.
“He didn’t play juvenile games. He had a gun. He hurt a lot of people. It’s not just Marc. It’s all these other people too,” Russ said.
Joshua-Alexander’s mother and his attorney declined Jordan’s interview requests. Joshua-Alexander is currently in custody at the Juvenile Detention Center.
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