Milwaukee, WI

MPD drone program expansion planned; transparency concern rises

Published

11 months ago

May 2, 2025

MPD drone program expansion planned; transparency concern rises

MILWAUKEE – Fighting crime with eyes in the skies – the Milwaukee Police Department is looking to enhance public safety with drones.

What we know:

MPD is looking to expand its airborne assessment team.

Sgt. Christopher Boss said the team officially launched just before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last summer.

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He and another officer operate exterior and interior drones as seen in this video. They’re used for crime scene management, crash reconstruction and missing persons cases, as well as keeping a watchful eye on protests and events.

“This is a tool we can use to make sure we’re all safer,” Boss said. “Several weeks ago there was an incident, and it was the recording from this particular incident that prompted the district attorney to issue a certain type of charge.”

Dig deeper:

MPD has six drones, but they want more. They want each district to be covered by one drone operator.

They want to use $250,000 of federal forfeiture funds to expand its two-person drone pilot program.

“We’re hoping to train up to 18 pilots, 14 deployed at the districts and four deployed from specialized patrols,” Boss said. “Prior to the application, every pilot will need to be certified by the FAA as a remote pilot.”

The particular models are valued at $15,000 each.

MPD said, in some capacity, the drones will serve as body cameras in the sky, with officers now frequently requesting assistance following suspects in high-speed chases.

“The majority of our patrol-led calls to date have involved vehicle pursuits,” Boss said. “The end of the vehicle pursuit, reckless vehicle or someone wanted for some sort of crime, like an armed robbery, leads us on a pursuit and at the end of the pursuit, everybody runs.”

The other side:

However, the purchase doesn’t come without some concerns. The Milwaukee Fire & Police Commission discussed it in April.

“I think the public is like, ‘Big Brother is watching,’” said chair Miriam Horwitz.

“The public, also me, I have a lot of worries,” vice chair Bree Spencer said. “I get it for water rescue. I’m very worried for things like protests.”

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What’s next:

Boss said the drone will not have facial recognition.

They hope to have the drone team fully operational by the end of the year. Prior to doing so, the department said it will launch a transparency dashboard for people to see their flight paths.

The Source: The Milwaukee Police Department and Milwaukee Fire & Police Commission provided information for this report.

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Milwaukee, WI

Where to catch a Brewers shuttle to American Family Field for 2026 games

Published

3 hours ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

Where to catch a Brewers shuttle to American Family Field for 2026 games

With Interstate 94 construction ongoing, handing the wheel over to a shuttle driver might be a popular play for Milwaukee Brewers fans heading to American Family Field this season.

Here’s the latest list of hotels and bars partnering with American Family Field for shuttle services.

Business set their own pick-up and drop-off times, so check with your preferred shuttle spot ahead of time to get their schedule. A map off drop-off points can also be found on the Brewers’ website under “Getting to American Family Field.”

Downtown Milwaukee

Ambassador Hotel Milwaukee, 2308 W. Wisconsin Ave.
Brewhouse Inn & Suites/On Tap Bar & Restaurant, 1203 N. 10th St.
Milwaukee Brat House, 1013 N. King Drive
Who’s on Third, 1007 N. King Drive

East side Milwaukee and Shorewood

Jack’s American Pub, 1323 E. Brady St.
Milwaukee Brat House, 4022 N. Oakland Ave., Shorewood
Vier North, 1832 E. North Ave.

South side Milwaukee and St. Francis

Fin ‘n Feather, 4060 W. Loomis Road
Oscar’s Pub & Grill, 1712 W. Pierce St.
Redbar, 2245 E. St. Francis Ave., St. Francis
Who’s on Layton, 512 W. Layton Ave.

Walker’s Point

MKE City Tours, 215 W. Bruce St.
Fat Daddy’s, 120 W. National Ave.
O’Lydia’s, 338 S. First St.
Steny’s, 800 S. Second St.

Blue Mound Road

Brewski’s Sports Club, 304 N. 76th St.
Balistreri’s Bluemound Inn, 6501 W. Blue Mound Road
Dugout 54, 5328 W. Blue Mound Road
J&B’s Sports Bar & Blue Ribbon Taproom, 5230 W. Blue Mound Road
Kelly’s Bleachers, 5218 W. Blue Mound Road
Magoo’s on the Mound, 5841 W. Blue Mound Road
McGinn’s, 5901 W. Blue Mound Road
Milwaukee Steakhouse, 6024 W. Blue Mound Road
Rounding Third, 6317 W. Blue Mound Road

West side Milwaukee

O’Brien’s Irish American Pub, 4928 W. Vliet St.
Saz’s State House Restaurant, 5539 W. State St.
Spitfires on State, 5018 W. State St.

Wauwatosa

Camp Bar Wauwatosa, 6600 W. North Ave.
Jackson’s Blue Ribbon Pub, 11302 W. Blue Mound Road

West Allis and West Milwaukee

Braun’s Power House, 7100 W. National Ave., West Allis
Flappers Bar, 7527 W. Becher St., West Allis
Fourth-N-Long, 8911 W. National Ave., West Allis
Hampton Inn & Suites Milwaukee West, 8201 W. Greenfield Ave., West Allis
Henry Flach Steakhouse, 9140 W. National Ave., West Allis
Liquid Johnny’s, 540 S. 76th St., West Allis
Natty Oaks, 11505 W. National Ave., West Allis
Paulie’s Pub & Eatery, 8031 W. Greenfield Ave., West Allis
Shelby’s National Tap, 9000 W. National Ave., West Allis
Paulie’s Field Trip, 1430 S. 81st St., West Allis
Jackson’s Blue Ribbon Pub of West Milwaukee, 1675 S. 44th St., West Milwaukee
The Ice House, 4238 W. Orchard Ave., West Milwaukee

Pewaukee

Steny’s Pewaukee, N29W24483 Watertown Road, Pewaukee

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Milwaukee, WI

Brewers opener arrives amid I-94 construction delays, traffic concerns

Published

15 hours ago

March 22, 2026

Press Room

Brewers opener arrives amid I-94 construction delays, traffic concerns

MILWAUKEE – With Milwaukee Brewers baseball returning to American Family Field, fans and officials are preparing for heavy traffic tied to ongoing freeway construction near the stadium.

What we know:

American Family Field sits in the center of the I-94 East-West freeway project, where lane closures and traffic shifts have been in place since November 2025 as crews work to address deteriorating road conditions, traffic demand, high crash rates, and aging bridge design.

With thousands of fans expected for Thursday’s home opener, March 26, both state transportation officials and team leaders say delays will likely increase.

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Officials say traffic patterns around the stadium may take time to adjust as construction and the baseball season overlap.

Local perspective:

“You always get stuck in traffic around this place,” said Max Larsson, a Brewers fan. “Go earlier. There’s always traffic with the construction going on and with it being Opening Day, it’s going to be even worse.”

“It’s going to be a mess. There’s no doubt about that,” said Mike Fleming, a Brewers fan. “It’s going to be a lot worse when the games are on.”

What they’re saying:

“Reopening some of that access around American Family Field. If you are going to the games next week or beyond – just add some extra time,” said Jason Roselle of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. “There is a little bit of traffic shifting out there so it is going to take a little bit longer to get in and out of the stadium.”

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Brewers President of Business Operations Rick Schlesinger said the team is taking additional steps to help keep traffic moving, including hiring three sheriff’s deputy crews and a tow truck to quickly clear disabled vehicles from the freeway.

“We’ve got three additional sheriff’s deputy crews that we hired who are going to help with traffic,” he said.

The team says it will be a learning process throughout the season as fans and drivers adjust to changing traffic patterns.

What you can do:

The Brewers also have a dedicated page outlining traffic routes and detours. More can be found at WisDOT’s website as well.

The Source: The Wisconsin Department of Transportation and Milwaukee Brewers provided information in this report.

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Milwaukee, WI

Large police presence on Water Street following reports of a fatal shooting

Published

1 day ago

March 22, 2026

Press Room

Large police presence on Water Street following reports of a fatal shooting

MILWAUKEE — A large police presence was seen on late Saturday night on N Water Street in Milwaukee after police received reports of a deadly shooting in the popular nightlife area.

The Milwaukee Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed to TMJ4 that they were called to the seen.

TMJ4

TMJ4 reached out to the Milwaukee Police Department but have not heard back.

This is a developing story.

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