Story Created:
Jul 4, 2008
Story Updated:
Jul 6, 2008
"Just call, somebody knows something."
The words of a woman who's related to one of six murder victims in Milwaukee on July 4th, and Milwaukee Police are searching for each of the killers.
The night ended with a murder. One man who's 34 years old was shot and killed near 32nd and Vine around 8:00 p.m.
There are five other murders that MIlwaukee Police continue to investigate, including one on 4th and Maple on Milwaukee's south side.
They're looking for whoever shot and killed Reyes Cruz, who was 25.
All following the incident that started off the early morning hours of July 4th, leaving four people dead.
Shooter Kills Four near 28th and Wright
At least one person fired a gun into a crowd in a street early Friday, killing four people and sending panicked revelers running for cover, police said.
Two women, ages 23 and 27, and two men, ages 34 and 28, were killed about 2:30 a.m. on the city's north side, police spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz said.
Two people were injured, including Sylvia Ware, who was returning home from celebrating her 35th birthday at a nightclub.
She pulled up in front of her house and saw 10 to 20 people outside. She heard gunshots and ducked in her car. The window shattered and she felt something hit her upper back.
"I'm like, 'Oh my God. My back is burning; I'm hit! I'm hit!"' she said. "Then I crawled out the car and I was like, 'Someone please help me, I'm hit!' I got as far as the middle of the street and then I fainted. The next thing you know I woke up in the ambulance."
As she was crawling, she saw two friends -- a man and woman -- lying lifeless in the street.
"I just can't believe it," she said. "I've never been in any type of situation like this before. I never seen no one die in front of me before. I just feel totally different today, like, 'Wow."'
More than 100 people were on the street when shots were fired, some possibly from a party, Schwartz said.
"We know a number of people were in the street when all of a sudden someone came out and started shooting," Schwartz said. "We are not clear how many shooters there were, if there was somebody in the crowd who shot back. Those things are still under investigation."
Those killed were identified as Kendrick L. Jackson, 34; Jacoby E. Claybrooks, 28; Theresa Raddle, 23; and Marielle Fisher, 27. Fisher was from Glendale and the rest were from Milwaukee.
No suspects are in custody. Police were having difficulty getting witnesses to cooperate, Schwartz said.
"In a case like this you have a neighborhood where people are living in fear, people are trapped in this neighborhood and are afraid to give information to police openly," she said.
Raddle's sister, Kesha Peeler, 27, said she knew all those killed.
"This is crazy," she said. "Why all this violence, why?" she said.
She and other family members stopped by the scene Friday morning. They placed balloons and teddy bears where their friends were shot. They hugged one another and sobbed as residents on porches watched in silence.
"Why? Why they take her?" Peeler yelled through sobs that could be heard down the street.
Peeler described her sister as someone who loved to laugh and crack jokes.
"I guess she was just at the wrong place at the wrong time," she said.
A 31-year-old man also was hospitalized with injuries not believed to be life-threatening.
Ware, who has released from the hospital later in the day, said she didn't think she was targeted, only caught in the crossfire.
"I'm just blessed to be alive," she said. "I know this can heal."
She added: "But my heart goes out to the families of the other ones who didn't make it."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.