Recent gun violence in downtown Milwaukee worries community leaders

Shawn Moore is fed up.

The 58-year-old father of six is a lifelong Milwaukee resident. 

“Every day, I speak with a parent who has lost their child,” Moore said. 

The community activist attended a special city committee meeting on Wednesday called in response to recent gun violence in downtown Milwaukee. But after the meeting, he said he wasn’t encouraged by how police plan to get a grasp on the issue.

“Listen, we always looking at the data,” Moore said. “I want to see results from that data.” 

Recent high-profile shootings and homicides on and near North Water Street, an area lined with popular bars and nightclubs in downtown Milwaukee, prompted the special meeting between city officials and police Wednesday. The violence includes a double homicide earlier in the month and a hit and run last weekend.

There have been five homicides so far this year in the police district that encompasses downtown. Two years ago at this time, the area had only one homicide, according to police crime data.

There have also been 20 nonfatal shootings so far this year in the district, up from 10 at this time last year. 

“The perception of what happens in downtown — which one would expect to be a safe area — affects the perception of the city as a whole,” Milwaukee Alder Scott Spiker said during the meeting Wednesday. “The feeling is, you lose your downtown, you lose your city.”

Meanwhile, homicides are back on the rise in Milwaukee after two straight years of declines. There have been 89 homicides in the city so far in 2025, up from 82 at this time last year.

“I think the issues we’re seeing in downtown are indicative of issues throughout the city,” Alder Milele Coggs said.

The Milwaukee Police Department has a special enforcement unit that places officers at four popular entertainment zones in the city, including near North Water Street. Police Inspector Sheronda Grant said there were around 35 officers working those zones on Friday and around 40 officers on Saturday. 

During the meeting, police officials said they plan to increase the number of officers working downtown on the weekend, increase curfew enforcement and have officers perform more check-ins with local businesses downtown.

However, adding more officers downtown means the department will have to divert officers from other police districts.

“If you’re taking resources, that’s going to leave us now vulnerable in our districts,” Alder Larresa Taylor said. “So we’re going to have to find another solution before we pull resources.” 

The police department, like many departments across the nation, is also struggling to recruit and retain officers. Alexander Ayala, president of the Milwaukee Police Association, said they are already “stretched thin.” 

“My officers are already tired,” Ayala said after the meeting. “They’re already working 16 hours a day. They’re already working all this overtime. So you want to pull staffing from where? We don’t have the staffing.” 

In addition to increasing the number of officers downtown, Grant said they’ll be making sure more officers wear flashing red and blue “Guardian Lights” when they’re working in the area so they are more visible. The department is also considering using drones to monitor large crowds to see where violence may be breaking out. 

Milwaukee Alder Bob Bauman, whose district encompasses downtown, said those proposals are not good enough for him.

“What I’ve heard today is not very encouraging,” Bauman said. “It’s pathetic, frankly.”

After the meeting, Bauman said he wants to see police commit to placing better barriers on North Water Street to block reckless drivers and stop violent behavior. Alders also called on better communication between police and the Office of Community Wellness and Safety, which has violence prevention teams that respond to shootings and homicides in Milwaukee.

The biggest challenge police are facing, according to MPD Chief of Staff Heather Hough, is “human behavior.” 

“We have people resorting to violence with a complete disregard for the safety of the person who is the victim of that violence, and a complete disregard for the safety of the people around them,” Hough said during the meeting. “And that is bigger than the police can explain.” 

Milwaukee’s rise in homicides comes as recent data from AH Datalytics found homicides are down nearly 22 percent in 30 of the most “murderous cities” nationwide this year. Coggs encouraged officials to study what has worked in other cities that have seen drops in the homicide rate, including in Chicago and Baltimore.

“So we have to figure out something,” Coggs said. “Some of it may be studying what others have done to see what works here, or not. But it definitely is going to be using what we have, the most efficient way possible.”