Protective custody concerns; Milwaukee family says city won’t help

MILWAUKEE – A mother and son reported a convicted felon’s death threats. Now, they say the city of Milwaukee is refusing to protect them.

When 63-year-old Sandra Boose called police in January, she said she was trying to do the right thing. Someone fired a round of bullets into her home hours later.

“I never did nothin’ to this boy, so I don’t understand why he’s shootin’ up this house,” Sandra said.

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In a neighborhood known for the Cherry Street Mob, police slogans – like “see something, say something” – can be tenuous. Sandra did just that last winter.

“I’m seein’ this boy on the corner, waving this gun around, and all these kids around. Just was ridiculous, so I called the police on him,” she said.

Sandra said that “boy” grew up in the neighborhood and is now an adult, convicted felon who was wanted at the time for skipping bail on a felony gun charge.

“I hate she called the police, dude,” said Donnell Boose, Sandra’s son.

Donnell said it was what police did next that put Sandra’s life in danger.

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“They come here first, then they walk across the street to his house, then they come back over here,” he said. “What did they expect to happen, man?”

After that, the Booses said the man Sandra had reported threatened to shoot up the house. Hours later, someone did.

“I had to get up in the middle of the night and the police tellin’ me to run away from my house,” said Sandra.

Threat to shoot up Sandra Boose’s home

Across the street, police found bullet casings and a cellphone with an email linking the phone to the man the Booses said had threatened them.

“I think to me that would be more than enough to at least arrest that guy,” Donnell said.

But police did not arrest anyone, and no one has been charged with shooting up their house. For that reason, FOX6 News is not naming the man accused of making the threats, though he was later picked up on a felony warrant. Last week, a judge reduced his bail from $5,000 to $1,500. Now, he’s out again.

“Man, we got to get up out of there, man. We can’t be here,” Donnell said.

In January, the city took the family into protective custody for 11 days. Now, they want that protection again from the Office of Community Wellness and Safety – formerly known as the Office of Violence Prevention. The office said no, and Sandra worries what might happen next.

“He said he did it. He’ll do it again,” she said.

Office of Violence Prevention Director Ashanti Hamilton said he has not received a new referral for protective services from the district attorney’s office. He said they’ve already helped the family once, and there is a limit to their resources.

FOX6 asked Milwaukee police to weigh in. They would only say the shooting is still under investigation.