An overnight shooting killed a 22-year-old and injured two others on Water Street, a downtown nightlife hotspot that has struggled with violence in previous years.
The shooting happened around 1:06 a.m. Sunday on the 1200 block of North Water Street, between East Juneau Avenue and East Knapp Street, according to the Milwaukee Police Department.
An 18-year-old and 19-year-old sustained non-fatal gunshot wounds and were taken to a local hospital for treatment. The 22-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.
Milwaukee police are seeking an unknown suspect or suspects.
“It’s very frustrating to see when people get hurt the way they got hurt,” said Mayor Cavalier Johnson on March 23.
The city’s police department and violence response teams are working together to follow up on the shooting, he said. Johnson called on state and federal lawmakers to change gun laws and for more media scrutiny to be directed there.
“That’s something that needs to happen,” he said. “I’m not seeing enough of that going on.”
The shooting happened near the Milwaukee School of Engineering’s Kern Center. The MSOE Public Safety Department confirmed no one from MSOE was involved in the incident. The department said there is no ongoing threat to the campus community.
City officials convened last summer to address gun violence in the two-block stretch along North Water Street between East Knapp and East State streets, which is typically blocked off with barricades on weekend nights.
Mayor Cavalier Johnson previously rolled out plans to address downtown violence, including increased MPD presence along Water Street, using drones to monitor the area, restrictions on e-scooter availability and switching intersections to flashing red lights.
Milwaukee has recorded 20 homicides so far in 2026, on pace with year-to-date numbers from 2024 and 2025, according to MPD statistics. That data does not include a March 21 shooting that killed a 25-year-old and injured four others.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Milwaukee police at (414) 935-7360. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at (414) 224-Tips or use P3 Tips.
Hope Karnopp can be reached at HKarnopp@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 1 dead, 2 injured in overnight shooting on Milwaukee’s Water Street
Reporting by Hope Karnopp and David Clarey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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