Ex-Milwaukee officer charged in fatal shooting of black man

Prosecutors charged a Milwaukee police officer Thursday with killing a black man in August, alleging the man had thrown his gun away and was unarmed when the officer fired the fatal shot.

Dominique Heaggan-Brown, who is also black, was charged with reckless homicide in the Aug. 13 death of Sylville Smith, which sparked two days of riots on Milwaukee's north side.

In the days after the shooting, both the police chief and the mayor had said police video clearly showed Smith had a gun and was turning toward officers when he was shot. Thursday's criminal complaint echoed that but went on to describe a second shot, fired into Smith's chest after Smith no longer had his gun.

Police chief Edward Flynn called the charge "a little difficult to understand" and said he hadn't seen any obvious wrongdoing by Heaggan-Brown in the footage.

Heaggan-Brown, who was fired in October over an unrelated sexual-assault case, shot Smith after a traffic stop.

After fleeing police, Smith turned with a gun and was shot once in his bicep, according to the complaint. The second shot occurred less than two seconds later, after Smith was lying on the ground with his hands near his head, according to the complaint.

Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm said in the complaint the video shows Smith throwing the gun over a fence after the first shot.

Heaggan-Brown told state agents he believed Smith's gun "flew" out of his hand over a fence after the first shot. The officer said he thought Smith was reaching for another weapon in his waistband, so he fired the second shot.

Chisholm did not take any questions from reporters Thursday. His office said the video would not be released.

Heaggan-Brown was scheduled to make an initial court appearance today. His attorney, Jonathan Smith, said he hasn't seen any of the state's evidence, but a read of the criminal complaint raises "issues." He didn't elaborate but promised a "vigorous" defense.

Smith's family issued a statement thanking Chisholm.

"We appreciate that the district attorney has shown independence and sound judgment in prosecuting the officer who shot and killed Sylville," the statement said.

Mayor Tom Barrett said the day after the shooting he had seen a still photo from the video that showed Smith facing Heaggan-Brown with a gun in his hand.

Barrett told reporters Thursday he still hasn't seen the video and called on prosecutors to release it.

The case that led to Heaggan-Brown's firing stemmed from an incident the night of Aug. 14. According to a criminal complaint, Heaggan-Brown and another man went to a bar, where they drank and watched television coverage of the unrest. The man told investigators Heaggan-Brown bragged he could do anything he wanted without repercussions, and he woke up to Heaggan-Brown sexually assaulting him.