thinkfast®
12-28-2005, 01:09 PM
MILWAUKEE -- At least 15 young men and boys dragged a 50-year-old man out of his car after he honked at them to move out of the street and then kicked and punched him, Milwaukee police said.
Samuel McClain was in critical condition Tuesday night at Froedtert Hospital with severe head injuries, but he was awake and able to talk.
"He might not be able to see or walk because of these people, these kids," McClain's daughter, Shanika Johnson, said.
Police said McClain was driving alone at about 10:30 p.m. Monday when he honked at a group of young people in the middle of the road on the city's north side.
"Instead of moving they surrounded the vehicle," Milwaukee police spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz said. The group of people, thought to be between 16 and 23 years old, then beat and kicked him, she said.
"They left him for dead and when we showed up he was laying in the street," Schwartz said.
Officers haven't made any arrests and were canvassing the neighborhood Tuesday, she said.
It was unclear where McClain was going or if he lived in the area, she said.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said neighbors ought to come forward to investigators.
"We need the community to be part of the crime fighting team as well," he said. "It is so important that people who have any knowledge about this crime ... call the police department and give the information that will help us solve this crime."
"Even if they're their own kids, they should turn them in," Shameon Johnson, said. "I don't want to go on a vigilante thing to try to do something myself. I just want to find out who did It and bring them to justice."
The city had a string of mob beatings last year.
Before that, the most infamous case was that of Charlie Young, who was beaten by more than a dozen people, mostly young boys, in September 2002. They chased him through the streets and beat him to death on a porch with weapons including shovel handles, rakes and tree limbs.
Last year, David Rutledge, a 54-year-old man with schizophrenia, was robbed and beaten on July 4, 2004. He later died. Six teens were charged. One was convicted, four had charges dropped and one is awaiting trial.
Four days later, a 14-year-old boy was kicked, punched and hit in the head with a piece of lumber after he had exchanged words with a girl on a playground. She summoned older relatives, who allegedly beat the boy.
Two weeks later, a Milwaukee man was beaten by a group of men after a girl in the neighborhood falsely accused him of indecently touching her.
And on July 29, 2004, a 16-year-old boy and his brothers were beaten by a group armed with bats, bottles, sticks and socks stuffed with canned food, after someone with the victims called someone a derogatory term.
Samuel McClain was in critical condition Tuesday night at Froedtert Hospital with severe head injuries, but he was awake and able to talk.
"He might not be able to see or walk because of these people, these kids," McClain's daughter, Shanika Johnson, said.
Police said McClain was driving alone at about 10:30 p.m. Monday when he honked at a group of young people in the middle of the road on the city's north side.
"Instead of moving they surrounded the vehicle," Milwaukee police spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz said. The group of people, thought to be between 16 and 23 years old, then beat and kicked him, she said.
"They left him for dead and when we showed up he was laying in the street," Schwartz said.
Officers haven't made any arrests and were canvassing the neighborhood Tuesday, she said.
It was unclear where McClain was going or if he lived in the area, she said.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said neighbors ought to come forward to investigators.
"We need the community to be part of the crime fighting team as well," he said. "It is so important that people who have any knowledge about this crime ... call the police department and give the information that will help us solve this crime."
"Even if they're their own kids, they should turn them in," Shameon Johnson, said. "I don't want to go on a vigilante thing to try to do something myself. I just want to find out who did It and bring them to justice."
The city had a string of mob beatings last year.
Before that, the most infamous case was that of Charlie Young, who was beaten by more than a dozen people, mostly young boys, in September 2002. They chased him through the streets and beat him to death on a porch with weapons including shovel handles, rakes and tree limbs.
Last year, David Rutledge, a 54-year-old man with schizophrenia, was robbed and beaten on July 4, 2004. He later died. Six teens were charged. One was convicted, four had charges dropped and one is awaiting trial.
Four days later, a 14-year-old boy was kicked, punched and hit in the head with a piece of lumber after he had exchanged words with a girl on a playground. She summoned older relatives, who allegedly beat the boy.
Two weeks later, a Milwaukee man was beaten by a group of men after a girl in the neighborhood falsely accused him of indecently touching her.
And on July 29, 2004, a 16-year-old boy and his brothers were beaten by a group armed with bats, bottles, sticks and socks stuffed with canned food, after someone with the victims called someone a derogatory term.