MILWAUKEE — A 15-year-old boy was charged Monday in children's court in connection to a shooting that injured six teens after the Juneteenth festivities concluded on Monday, June 19.
TMJ4 News is not naming the suspect at this time because he is not being charged as an adult.
The teen was charged with four felony counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety (as a party to a crime), two felony counts of first-degree reckless injury (as a party to a crime), one felony count of possession of a firearm by adjudicated delinquent, one count of possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18, one count of violation of nonsecure custody order, and one count disorderly conduct.
Milwaukee police officers responded to the area of Martin Luther King Jr. and Chambers around 4:20 p.m. Thousands were still gathered in the area since the city's Juneteenth event ended at 4 p.m. The victims include four females (ages 14, 16, 17, and 17) and two males (17 and 19).
According to a petition filed in Milwaukee County Children's Court, several witnesses say the incident stemmed from a fight involving two girls. A number of girls joined in and were assaulting one of the girls. The fight intensified between two groups before the 15-year-old boy pulled out a gun and fired between four to 10 shots into the group, the petition says.
A citizen described the fight as one girl being jumped by the group. The petition says in the videos, you can see the victim was able to "break free from the group" and tried to walk away with her hands raised "as if to say she gives up."
Cell phone footage from citizens and witness reports helped Milwaukee police identify many of those involved, including the 15-year-old suspected shooter.
WATCH: Video sent to our news team shows the moment shots rang out. We blurred the faces of the people involved and stopped the video right after the trigger was pulled. (Warning: This video might be disturbing for some viewers.)
One of the groups involved in the fight included members of "The Veah Boys." The petition says they are "a violent juvenile gang that focuses on stealing cars/reckless driving and bragging about their conduct on social media." They have been involved in a deadly shooting war with other juvenile gangs in Milwaukee, including the Kia Boys, the petition alleges.
"Dozens of children have shot and been shot as a result of these gangs, not to mention the many citizens, both adults and children who have been injured in the crossfire and/or become victims of the robberies/carjackings/car thefts and reckless driving that are the hallmark of the Veah Boys and their counterparts," the petition states.
The 15-year-old boy was arrested and admitted to being present at the fight and shooting. When he was shown a still photo of himself at the scene and holding a firearm, he ended his interview with the police.
The petition says the boy was convicted of two felony counts of armed robbery in Milwaukee County in March 2021. He was 13 at the time. He was placed on nine months of probation.
The suspect was also arrested on April 10, 2023, for possession of a semiautomatic pistol. The state argued to have him remain in custody at that time. He was released on pretrial monitoring.
The teen had a charged GPS ankle monitor on him at the time of the mass shooting on June 19. The petition says it is unclear if he was with an approved adult at the time. He also can not legally possess a firearm.
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