Terrell Thompson, Milwaukee Police Shooting Suspect: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Terrell Thompson is the 19-year-old Milwaukee man who is accused of shooting and killing a Milwaukee police officer in the early morning hours of February 7, 2023, Milwaukee’s police chief confirmed in a news conference.

Milwaukee police identified the officer as Peter Jerving. Read a tribute to the officer here. In the news conference, the chief, Jeffrey Norman, said Jerving was an outstanding officer who wanted to be a police officer since age 13 and was honored with a life-saving award by the department.

Norman said in a news conference that the officer was a four-year veteran of the force.

Members of the Milwaukee police mounted patrol stood guard outside the medical examiner’s office:

Through a law enforcement source, Heavy confirmed that the suspect had a Twitter page in which he flashed wads of cash and posted photos of a gun in 2022 despite being out on signature bonds in two hit-and-run criminal cases from 2021; in one of those 2021 cases, for hit-and-run, he was given probation and a stayed House of Correction sentence the day before the officer’s death, online court records and law enforcement sources confirm. He most recently posted on the Twitter page in March 2022.

“MKE Young Boss FFE /Family First Ent💰♋️” the Twitter profile says.

Norman said in the news conference that the suspect is deceased.

“This is a terrible day for our city and we are hurting,” a Milwaukee police press release, emailed to Heavy, said. “An officer got ready to go to work last night to protect our community and paid the ultimate sacrifice. MPD sends our deepest sympathies to our officer’s family and everyone that was impacted by this heinous act of violence.”

Here’s what you need to know:

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1. Terrell Thompson Was in Court the Day Before the Milwaukee Police Shooting & Received Probation on a Hit & Run Charge, Records Show

The sources confirmed that Thompson is the same Terrell I. Thompson, 19, who was in court the day before the shooting on two hit-and-run cases. Thompson was convicted of misdemeanor hit-and-run in one of those cases, court records show. Court records also show that the other case, for misdemeanor hit-and-run as well, was dismissed in a plea agreement with the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office and read-in at sentencing for the first case.

The chief confirmed in the news conference that the suspect was 19.

Read the first criminal complaint here.

Read the second criminal complaint here.

The Milwaukee County court system initially had the two cases transposed in the online court system as to which was dismissed and which resulted in conviction but then issued a correction and fixed them.

According to court records, Milwaukee County Judge Christopher Dee, an appointee of former Governor Scott Walker, gave Thompson a stayed 120-day sentence in the House of Correction, a $300 fine, and 12 months of probation.

In both cases, court records show, Thompson was released on signature bonds. The bonds remained even though, according to court records, he repeatedly failed to appear in court.

“Christopher Dee brings a wealth of experience to the Milwaukee County bench and is widely respected by his peers and community leaders. I am confident he will be an excellent judge who upholds the Constitution and the rule of law,” Walker said in a press release when he appointed Dee to the bench.

The criminal complaint in the case that resulted in conviction is out of the Village of Brown Deer, a suburb in Milwaukee County. It says that on Saturday, January 16, 2021, at approximately 10:26 p.m., an officer responded to a two-vehicle accident that occurred at the intersection of North Sherman Boulevard and West Bradley Road.

When the officer arrived, he observed a Buick Rendezvous “with two occupants inside with heavy front end damage facing west in the southbound lanes of Sherman Blvd., and a black Mercury Milan, which was crashed in the east side of Soul Food Dream, a business located at 4301 W. Bradley Rd.,” the criminal complaint says.

A passenger in the Buick told police that he saw the Mercury run a red light and crash into their vehicle, the complaint said. He said he saw Terrell Thompson exit the car and run southbound carrying a small backpack, it said, adding that the passenger tried to run after the man but couldn’t catch him.

At that point, Thompson’s mother, identified in the complaint as T.B., arrived at the scene and stated “that the defendant called her and that he fled the scene because he was afraid of a man chasing him, and that he wanted to go to the hospital,” according to the criminal complaint.

An officer located the defendant in the area of North Sherman Boulevard and West Fountain Avenue, the complaint says. It adds that Thompson was transported to the hospital.

According to the criminal complaint in the hit-and-run case that was dismissed and read-in at sentencing, a Milwaukee Police officer responded to the area of North 49th Street and West Hope Avenue to “investigate a shots fired call.”

The 911 caller said she was following a car “which had struck her car at N. Sherman Boulevard and W. Congress Street,” the complaint said. According to the complaint, she “described the striking vehicle as a dark-colored SUV with no plates and window tint.”

The caller stated further that, as she was following the striking SUV, “she observed it get into a second car accident at the above location. KF stated that the SUV fled from this second crash scene, and she continued to follow it,” the complaint says.

According to the complaint, the caller “stated that the striking vehicle pulled over in the 5000 block of W. Congress Street. The driver exited the SUV and spoke with KF (the caller). The driver identified himself as ‘Terrell’ and provided to KF a phone number.” He then got back into the SUV and drove down an alley, the complaint says.

The officer subsequently located a Mitsubishi Outlander SUV with severe front end damage in a parking lot in the 4400 block of W. Congress Street, the complaint says. The complaint says it had no registration plates, and the driver and sole occupant was identified as Thompson. The caller identified Thompson as the person she “observed get into the crash and flee from the above location,” the complaint says.

Another officer responded to the scene to assist with an accident/personal injury call for service, the complaint says.

Upon arrival, he “located a black 4-door Lexus sedan bearing WI registration plate #AHY-8410 disabled in the northbound lane but facing south,” the complaint says.

“This vehicle had significant passenger side damage, and the side airbags had deployed. The front passenger of the sedan was identified as KG (10/28/1991 d.o.b.). KG stated that he and his brother (who was driving) were northbound on N. Sherman Boulevard approaching W. Nash Street,” the complaint said.

“A second vehicle struck them on the passenger side, failed to stop, and then fled south on Sherman and west on Fond du Lac Avenue,” the complaint says. “KG stated that the striking vehicle appeared to be being followed by another car. KG stated that he was experiencing pain in his right ribcage as a result of the crash. P.O. Llanas observed the front grille of a Mitsubishi laying in the street at the above location.”

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2. The Police Chief Says Terrell Thompson, Whose Twitter Page Contains Pictures of Cash & Watches, Was Wanted in a Robbery

On Twitter, Thompson posted pictures of cash and watches.

“Young paid n****💰 * looking how far I came motivation🙏🏿” he wrote in January 2022 while his court cases were pending.

Thompson was also on Facebook. His most recent post:

He wrote in February 2022: “People dying that ain’t even inna streets🤦🏿‍♂️‼️ Yall stay prayed up‼️💯”

In the news conference, Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said the suspect was wanted in a robbery.

Norman said that the Milwaukee police officers responded to the 1700 block of South 17th Street to check for the robbery suspect at 1:16 a.m. on the morning of February 7, 2023.

He was wanted for a robbery on the far north side of Milwaukee, the chief said in the news conference.

In a press release emailed to Heavy, Milwaukee police wrote:

Tuesday, February 7, 2023, at about 1:16 a.m., Milwaukee Police Department officers assigned to District Four responded to the area of the 2700 block of S. 14th Street to check for a suspect wanted in connection to a robbery that occurred yesterday, Monday, February 6, 2023, at approximately 11:25 p.m., on the 3600 block of W. Good Hope Road.

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3. Terrell Thompson Was Accused of Threatening to Kill a Woman & Sending Her Photos of His Gun, Reports Say

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Thompson was subjected to a temporary restraining order last year in which a woman said “he was harassing her with repeated texts and phone calls, threatening to kill her and sending her photos of his gun and a gun owned by his mother.”

The case no longer shows up in online court records.

The newspaper reported that the temporary restraining order was “granted but a judge dismissed the request for a long-term restraining order after the woman did not appear in court for the hearing.”

Thompson’s mother, Tamera Brown, told the Journal Sentinel, “she was still in disbelief about learning what happened to her son.”

She told the newspaper he was “ok with” the probation sentence. “He was just going to get through with it. It was only 12 months, so he said he was just going to knock it out and stay out of trouble,” she told the newspaper.

Brown created a GoFundMe page in the wake of the officer’s death for her own family. It reads,

My name is Tamera Brown. I am the mother of Terrell Thompson just wanted you to know a little bit about my son, he was a loving joyful kid full of happiness . Terrell will take the shirt off his back to help a stranger. He was very well respectful to his elders. He grew up in church with a loving family. We can use all the help we can get any things is appreciated. Just take the time and think about this young black man. We just want the truth about things and justice. He was only 19years old birthday is June 27,2003. He enjoyed drawing, singing, and construction work. Please keep our family in prayers.

It only raised $40.

According to the chief, the suspect was located by officers and ignored commands.

He then led them on a foot pursuit, and, according to Norman’s press conference statements, the officer who died caught up to the suspect.

They struggled, and then the suspect shot the officer with a handgun, according to Norman.

The police press release said:

Upon arrival, officers located the suspect, who ignored their commands and fled on foot. One of the officers was able to catch up to the suspect and a struggle ensued. During the struggle, the suspect used a handgun and fired shots striking the other officer. That officer discharged his firearm. During the exchange, the suspect was struck by gunfire.

The officer, a 37-year-old male with over 4-years of service sustained life-threatening injuries. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Despite the best efforts of medical personnel, he died of his injuries.

Talk show host Dan O’Donnell first obtained a photo of Thompson.

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4. The Milwaukee Police Association Called Terrell Thompson ‘One Truly Evil Individual’

In a statement emailed to Heavy, the Milwaukee Police Association “suffered the tragic loss of one of our officers.”

The MPA wrote:

This loss of life was avoidable and only occurred because of the actions of one truly evil individual. This individual chose to fire several rounds at officers with complete disregard for their lives. He did not care about the consequences of his actions, including the immeasurable harm his actions would do to the officer’s family, colleagues, and friends. Not to mention the community as a whole. He chose to disregard the sanctity of human life, all in a vain, self-serving attempt to evade lawful arrest. As we now know, his choice directly caused his death, which is tragic but was 100% his own fault and avoidable.

Because of his selfish and needless actions, a father and mother will be burying their son, fellow officers will miss the laughter and joy the fallen officer brought to them, and the community suffers through another senseless loss of a dedicated public servant who wanted nothing more, from a young age, to do this job and help people. Left in the wake of this tragedy are countless more, to include his partner that day, who is now left with indescribable grief and guilt wondering if there was anything they could have done differently to save his life, even though we know there was not. The actions of one individual have now caused unimaginable pain to so many.

As we go through the next couple of weeks, we ask for your thoughts and prayers for the family, colleagues, and friends of our officers. We will look forward to celebrating the life of our fallen officer, making sure people know the story of his courageous and selfless act, and how he lived these acts out every day, not just on his last. We will ensure that the sacrifice that our officer made in so many people’s lives is never forgotten. Never.

Before dying, the wounded officer was able to also shoot his gun at the suspect.

The suspect died at the scene, but it’s unclear whether the fatal wound came from the officer or was self-inflicted, said Norman in the news conference.

The police press release confirmed that the suspect, “a 19-year-old Milwaukee man, was pronounced deceased at the scene. At this time, it is unknown if the suspect’s fatal injury was self-inflicted or from the officer’s gunfire.”

“This is a fluid and ongoing investigation. The Milwaukee Area Investigative Team will be investigating this incident. The Brookfield Police Department will be the lead law enforcement agency in the investigation,” it says. “A community briefing discussing this incident will be released in the future.”

The police press release says, “We appreciate the Milwaukee Fire Department and the staff at Froedtert that provided medical care for our officer. Once family notifications have been completed we will release the name and photo of the fallen officer.”

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5. The Officer Died Just Hours After the Anniversary of an Officer Who Was Also Shot & Killed in Milwaukee

The officer was shot and killed just hours after the four-year anniversary of the death of Officer Matthew Rittner.

Rittner was shot and killed on February 6, 2019. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the man who killed Rittner received a life prison term.

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