A week ago, we were talking about the recent reckless driving incidents around the city. One that got a lot of press was on the northside outside of a school. The stolen Kia was weaving in and out of traffic before crashing into a school bus in front of the school. People in the front seats were hanging out of the window before the crash. A juvenile inside of the school bus was thrown to the ground from the collision. The front passenger in the stolen car was severely injured and is still critical at this time. Numerous other juveniles ran from the vehicle. Updates show two females were arrested from the incident. The 14-year-old driver was also taken into custody. He faces five felonies including hit and run and reckless injury. Witnesses at the scene stated after the crash, the 14-year-old tried to drag his friend from the wreck, yelling,” come on, come on”. A witness told him to stop, and he then ran off. The 14-year-old had just been suspended from Morse Middle School after being arrested for stealing a different car.
The warm weather is just around the corner, and we all know what occurs when it gets hot outside. The police department and the OVP (Office of Violence Prevention) will both be working overtime to keep everyone safe as possible. The chief has his 2023 violence reduction plan for this summer. It is nice to think outside of the box at times and do different things. That is exactly what the OVP did during the first round of the NBA playoffs. We all remember the playoffs last year and all the shootings in downtown Milwaukee. They help put out ambassadors to give information out plus guide people around the downtown areas during the games. It worked the brief time the Bucks were in the playoffs. This is something we can build on for a year when we should be in the playoffs again.
Lastly reckless driving some more. Last week when I wrote about the two major incidents, the crashing into school bus plus the lady running redlight hitting a county transit bus, with her son in critical condition, one more incident occurred at the beginning of that week. Two drivers on Highway 145 got into it and one of the drivers pulled out a gun and fired several shots into the other vehicle. The driver was deceased at the scene and the female in the passenger seat was not injured. That suspect is still being sought currently.
The Chief should use some of his overtime money to put extra officers on the street when we start to get those extra hot days. Officers on the beat walking would help plus riding on bicycles. When officers are visible it helps to make the whole city feel more comfortable.