A Milwaukee man was charged earlier this week in the shooting death of his wife outside a salon in downtown Milwaukee after manicure and pedicure appointments he had made for her 60th birthday.

On Tuesday, Timothy Darnell Lewis, 59, was charged with first-degree reckless homicide and use of a dangerous weapon in the death of Jacqueline Beason. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.

Lewis told Milwaukee detectives on Sunday that “he is the one who did it. No one else did it,” according to the criminal complaint. His initial court appearance in Milwaukee County was Thursday morning.

According to the criminal complaint, Beason was on the phone with one of her daughters Saturday, just before she was shot and killed inside her car, parked on North Cass Street. Beason’s daughter told police she could hear her mother arguing with Lewis. Beason’s daughter heard her mother tell Lewis that he had been “disrespectful to her and her daughters,” and then to “put that gun away.”

When Beason’s daughter asked about Lewis having a gun, Beason responded, “It’s a fake.” The last thing the daughter heard was Lewis telling her mom, “There you go.” Then the call ended. She did not hear the gunshot, according to the complaint.

The daughter didn’t immediately respond Thursday to an interview request.

A neighbor who witnessed the shooting called 911. Beason was pronounced dead at the scene.

Lewis said he went to the salon, knowing she would be there, according to the complaint.

Lewis said Beason and her daughter were yelling at him and “he got tired and took out his gun.”

Beason is the 15th person in Milwaukee County to die due to a domestic violence-related homicide this year, according to the Sojourner Family Peace Center, the largest service provider for survivors of domestic abuse in the state.

Milwaukee’s domestic violence prevention centers

Sojourner Family Peace Center, 619 W. Walnut St., 414-933-2722

Serving the Black community: The Asha Project, 3719 W. Center St., Milwaukee, 414-252-0075.

Serving the LGBTQ+ community: Diverse & Resilient’s Room to be Safe program, 2439 N. Holton St., Milwaukee, 414-390-0444.

Serving the Native American community: Gerald L. Ignace Indian Health Center, 930 W. Historic Mitchell St., Milwaukee, 414-383-9526; and the HIR Wellness Institute, 3136 W. Kilbourn Ave., Milwaukee, 414-763-5815.

Serving the Muslim community: Milwaukee Muslim Women’s Coalition, 5235 S. 27th St., Greenfield, 414-727-4900.

Serving the Hmong community: Hmong American Women’s Association, 3727 W. National Ave., Milwaukee, 414-930-9352.

Serving the Latin American community: UMOS Latina Resource Center, 2701 S. Chase Ave., Suite D, Milwaukee, 414-389-6500.

Jessica Van Egeren is a reporter with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She can be reached at jvanegeren@gannett.com.

MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WBAY) – Milwaukee’s Italian community center says First Lady Jill Biden will speak at Festa Italiana’s opening ceremonies on Friday.

Biden is the first Italian-American first lady.

She’ll speak at Henry Maier Festival Park’s Aurora Pavilion at 6 p.m.

This will be the first lady’s third visit to the Badger State this year. She held an education roundtable in Green Bay and visited the Rail Yard’s innovation center in February. She came back for a day in March, making stops in Milwaukee and Waukesha.

Festa Italiana runs through Sunday, featuring Italian food, music and culture.

Copyright 2024 WBAY. All rights reserved.

MILWAUKEE — Regression was inevitable for Shota Imanaga, the Japanese pitcher whose first nine starts for the Chicago Cubs were almost spotless. It was always a matter of how soon it would happen and how much of a decline, not whether he could go undefeated and keep his ERA within range of zero. The game is forever humbling.

Two months into his rookie season, it’s conceivable that Imanaga will pitch in the All-Star Game, earn Cy Young Award votes and start Game 1 of a playoff series. Everyone in Imanaga’s camp and Jed Hoyer’s front office would have taken that when Imanaga signed a four-year, $53 million contract in January. All of their big-picture objectives remain in sight.

There will also be more moments like Wednesday night’s 10-6 loss at American Family Field, where the Milwaukee Brewers were all over Imanaga’s fastball/splitter combination. These things happen, and it was never as easy as Imanaga made it look. But given how this team is constructed, the Cubs will have trouble being good enough if Imanaga is less than extraordinary.

Because the Brewers aren’t going away. Not after watching manager Craig Counsell jump to a big-market rival. Not after trading Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes to the Baltimore Orioles. Not after showing interest in Imanaga but ultimately passing on the 30-year-old left-hander. So much will change over the next four months, but so far Milwaukee’s system still works.

Brewers fans booed Counsell when he walked out to the mound in the fifth inning to take the ball from Imanaga. In giving up seven runs, Imanaga’s ERA increased from 0.84 to 1.86. He had allowed only five earned runs in his first nine major-league starts, a beginning that surpassed even Fernando Valenzuela’s and “Fernandomania” with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1981.

Capping our #AAPIHeritageMonth features with tonight’s starting pitcher, Shota Imanaga!

Take a look back at the Throwing Philosopher’s journey to Cubs pinstripes. 🎥 pic.twitter.com/pbdBBu2DEp

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) May 29, 2024

“It’s hard for me to say I’ve proven something,” Imanaga said through an interpreter. “We’re a third of the way into the season. Hopefully in the next two-thirds, I can prove something.”

That attitude is a major reason teammates appreciate Imanaga and believe he will continue to make adjustments. They will need him to make up ground on the Brewers, a first-place team that heads into Thursday afternoon’s series finale with a 4 1/2-game lead over the Cubs in the National League Central.

The Brewers didn’t appear to be off-balance or uncomfortable against Imanaga, a fly-ball pitcher who had surrendered only three home runs to the first 209 major-league hitters he faced. But there was Christian Yelich, Milwaukee’s No. 3 hitter, hammering a first-pitch fastball an estimated 441 feet out to right-center field for a two-run homer in the first inning.

Imanaga struck out only one of the 22 Milwaukee hitters he faced. He didn’t get in trouble with walks — there was just one — or bad defense. The Brewers put up five runs in the third inning with three singles, a double and a home run off Imanaga.

“He’s been the definition of an ace,” Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said. “This day was coming. He’ll learn from it. He’ll move on and figure out what was a little bit different today and come back the next start and be great.”

Imanaga had not pitched since May 18, when the Cubs won their second 1-0 game started by him. Counsell and pitching coach Tommy Hottovy rearranged their pitching plans off a rainout last weekend in St. Louis, skipping Imanaga in the rotation so he could get extra rest and then go on a six-day schedule for his next start.

The same instincts that led Counsell to pull Ben Brown from Tuesday night’s game after seven no-hit innings factored into that decision to prioritize Imanaga’s future and give him a break. Keeping those long-term interests in mind is a way Counsell gains respect from players. It’s part of how the Brewers consistently functioned as a strong second-half team.

The Cubs also iced one of the hottest pitchers in baseball history.

Imanaga downplayed that angle — “I don’t really think there was an issue with that” — and said the time off was “good for recovery.” During his 10-day layoff, the Cubs experienced a five-game losing streak and flipped their run differential from positive to negative. The Cubs are now a .500 team through 56 games: 8-2 in games started by Imanaga, and 20-26 in the rest of their schedule.

“I guess the historic start is over,” Counsell said. “The great start is still here. Nothing changes from my perspective. He’s been a joy to watch. He’s been a huge part of us getting a bunch of wins. I look forward to him going out there again.”

(Photo: Stacy Revere / Getty Images)