My God, have you ever seen such a puff piece in your life? This guy
tried to run someone over, I feel about as close to zero sympathy for the victim as I can.
If he was such a fine, upstanding (illegal) member of society, why was his fiancee's first reaction that he might be in jail?
Sheesh
http://www.jsonline.com/news/metro/mar05/307693.asp
Shooting ends couple's future
Scant details released about police killing of immigrant, 25
By GEORGIA PABST and JOHN DIEDRICH
gpabst@journalsentinel.com
Posted: March 7, 2005
The man who was shot and killed by an off-duty Milwaukee police officer early Sunday was an illegal Mexican immigrant who had a new job and had planned to marry the mother of his two daughters.
Veronica Gonsalez (above) talks Monday about her fiancé, Wilbert Javier Prado. The couple recently had moved to Milwaukee from Racine, and they were excited about Prado"s new job as a roofer. "He was a fun guy, outgoing, who loved to eat and who loved kids, especially his daughters," she said.
Wilbert Javier Prado, 25, came to Milwaukee six years ago from his home in Veracruz to work, said his fiancée, Veronica Gonsalez, 23, as she sat in a duplex on W. Windlake Ave. on Monday. The couple had moved to Racine a year ago but returned to Milwaukee because job prospects in Racine were poor. Prado had gotten a roofing job here that paid $11 an hour.
"We were all excited about his new job, because it was more opportunity for us," she said. "We were doing to get married and buy furniture. . . . He didn't own any guns. He wasn't in a gang. He was a father who worked hard and took care of us."
Saturday night, Prado went to a friend's house to meet other pals from his native Veracruz, she said.
"I told him if he decided to go somewhere else to call me," Gonsalez said. He never called, and she grew angry when he didn't show up and the night wore on.
"At first I thought he had been pulled over by the police and was in jail," she said, adding he didn't have a driver's license. She said she called jails in Racine and Milwaukee, then went looking for the van he drove.
She checked with friends, but no one had seen him.
When police came to Gonsalez's house Sunday night, she thought he had been taken to jail. Instead, police delivered the news that Prado had been shot and killed by an off-duty police officer.
Questions raised
On Monday, Gonsalez and friends made arrangements for a local memorial and to ship the body to Prado's parents in Mexico. She, her mother and friends said they were trying to piece together what had happened.
"He wouldn't pull over to talk to strangers because he speaks almost no English," she said. "And he doesn't talk to African-Americans (the off-duty officer is African-American) unless he has to. They said he was running away, and he probably was. If he saw someone who was black, not in uniform, with a gun telling him to stop when he doesn't understand English, he wouldn't stop; he would run."District Attorney E. Michael McCann agreed to an inquest at the family's request.
Police did not release the name of the off-duty officer and did not give a reason for denying the request.
A department source identified the officer as 34-year-old Alfonzo Glover, who has been with the force for four years.
The police version
Deputy Chief Brian O'Keefe gave this account of the killing:
The officer was driving home in his car at 12:15 a.m. after working at District 3. A GMC Safari van began tailgating him on the freeway and flashing high-beam lights. The officer said he didn't recall cutting off the vehicle or any other incident.
The officer left the freeway, and the van followed. The officer said he circled a block near S. 9th St. and W. Ohio Ave. and then slowed to let the van pass.
"The officer said he didn't know why anyone would follow him," O'Keefe said.
The officer got out of his car to either wave the man by or ask him if there was a problem. The van came to a stop but quickly accelerated, hitting the officer and then slamming into two vehicles. The officer said that the suspect then turned back toward the officer and pointed what looked like a gun.
The officer fired at the man, who got out of the van and ran. The officer chased him, believing he still had a gun. The officer shot and killed the suspect in an alley. O'Keefe declined to say how many shots were fired.
Police did not recover a gun on the man.
The officer said he did not recognize the man. Officials were researching whether the officer has had contact with the man.O'Keefe said more information about the shooting would be released, but not until the investigation is complete.
O'Keefe said no officer wants to shoot anyone.
"Officers have to protect themselves," he said. "We have to do what we have to do to keep ourselves safe."Gonsalez said she wants answers.
Her friend, Michelle Mendoza, said: "We're worried. . . . We seem to have a problem in the city of Milwaukee with closing our eyes in police shootings. Weren't there other alternatives? The police officer didn't act very professional."Police said Prado had several aliases, but Gonsalez said they were variations of his name that he used when he was pulled over by police.
She said Prado had not had major trouble with the law, but he had been arrested about five years ago for stealing deodorant from a supermarket.
"He was a fun guy, outgoing, who loved to eat and who loved kids, especially his daughters," she said.
Angelic man shot and killed in Milwaukee
