Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Victims Alleged Attack By Mob Like Group Of Blacks At Kilbourn Reservoir Park In Milwaukee

BP convenience store ransacked and robbed by group of Black teenagers.

By H. Nelson Goodson
July 6, 2011
(Updated)

Milwaukee - On Tuesday, Milwaukee Police Chief Edward A. Flynn admitted that a group of African-American (Black) teenagers had attacked a group of five Whites shortly before midnight on July 3 at the Kilbourn Reservoir Park. The White teenagers claim they were beaten, kicked, robbed and beer poured on them by Black youths. The White victims alleged that the attackers were laughing and yelling racial slurs at them. A 22-year-old woman was also punched in the face and was taken to a hospital for treatment. She received at least three stitches above an eye, according to police.
Some of the Black teenagers involved in three strong armed robberies at Reservoir park, are also suspected of ransacking and looting a BP Pantry 41 on E. North Ave. and N. Humbolt Blvd. minutes earlier. The youths went into the Pantry grabbed and took candy, sodas and snacks, according to video surveillance from the store released by police.
Chief Flynn said, they are searching for the Black suspects and want people who know any information about the identity of the suspects to come forward. Two 16-year-old suspects and one 18-year-old suspect have been taken into custody.
Mayor Tom Barrett during Tuesday's press conference said, the suspects will be eventually caught and they will be prosecuted.
On Wednesday during the Gordon Park community meeting, Chief Flynn admitted officers didn't take statements from victims involved because they weren't enough officers to respond to the scene. The priority for the officers was to disperse and move the crowds along and tend to the victims.
More than 195 Riverside residents, including many of the victims from Sunday's melee were at the meeting, but capacity was posted at 75. The victims were dismayed on how Milwaukee police responded and acted at the scene. They are calling for an investigation into police actions at Riverside, which some say, police acted unprofessionally and were incompetent.
The victims criticized the officers for refusing to take statements and ignoring that they were the actual victims. Reports from police weren't properly logged in and took a day to figure out what had happened. The complaints from victims being reported to police didn't match the reports of incidents in the Riverside area.
Chief Flynn has a policy directing police not to respond to minor incidents in order to keep crime statistics down, which in this case is a disservice to the Riverside neighborhood residents. Flynn confirmed that 19 victims have been identified, but actually they were 26 victims according to his statistics, which included 1 Asian, 4 Hispanics, 8 Whites and 13 Blacks.
The victims were attacked at the Reservoir Park by a group of about 100 Black youths returning from the July 3 fireworks just before midnight. Six armed robberies and numerous strong arm robberies were also reported, according to police. About 22 Black youths from the same group had entered the BP Pantry 41 convenience store earlier and spontaneously ransacked it and stole items. 17 of the 22 Black youths have been identified by police.
He stunned the residents at the Gordon Park meeting, when he admitted that he doesn't believe in curfew and will not have his officers enforce curfew. "It's not practical to have officers chasing 15-year-olds" throughout the city, Flynn said.
Flynn said, one of the suspects sought in the BP Pantry 41 melee turned himself in after seeing his picture on the news. Several parents who saw their kids in the BP surveillance video that was aired on the news, also turned them in. Police say that three female teenagers ages 13, 14 and 16 were cited for theft, curfew violation and disorderly conduct along with a 15-year-old boy.

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