Milwaukee police locate critically missing teenager, 17
Kyler Spencer-Mack has been located and is safe, according to the Milwaukee Police Department.
Spencer-Mack, 17, who was last seen on the 2500 block of North 41st Street, and was classified as "critically missing."
Spencer-Mack is described as a Black male, 5-foot, 8-inches tall, medium build, weighing around 150 pounds, with a low haircut. He was last seen wearing blue jeans, unknown shirt, gray shoes, and an Army fatigue jacket with a white teddy bear on the front with "Members Only" written on it.
Anyone with any information is asked to call the Milwaukee Police Department District 3 at 414-935-7232.
This story has been updated to include new information.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee police locate critically missing teenager, 17
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
23 minutes ago
Federal judge recuses himself days before sentencing Memphis officers accused in Tyre Nichols' death
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The federal judge presiding over the case against five former Memphis officers convicted in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols recused himself Friday, just days before he was supposed to hand down sentences for the men. U.S. District Judge Mark S. Norris issued a one-sentence order saying he was recusing himself and "returns the matter to the Clerk for reassignment to another United States District Judge for all further proceedings.' He offered no further explanation. Norris' clerk did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and the U.S. Attorney's Office declined comment Friday. Norris had overseen the case since federal indictments were issued in September 2023. He accepted guilty pleas from two of the officers and presided over the trial for the other three officers in October. Four of the five officers had been scheduled to be sentenced next week and the fifth on June 23. U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman was added to the case late Friday, court records showed. It was not immediately clear how the change in judges would affect the timing of the sentencings. Several motions had been filed under seal in recent days. It was not clear if any of those asked for Norris to step away from the case. It is unusual for a judge to recuse themself from a case between the trial and sentencing. The officers yanked Nichols from his car, then pepper-sprayed and hit the 29-year-old Black man with a Taser. Nichols fled, and when the five officers, who are also Black, caught up with him, they punched, kicked and hit him with a police baton. Nichols called out for his mother during the beating, which took place just steps from his home. Nichols died Jan. 10, 2023, three days later. Footage of the beating captured by a police pole camera also showed the officers milling about, talking and laughing as Nichols struggled with his injuries — video that prompted intense scrutiny of police in Memphis. The beating also sparked nationwide protests and prompted renewed calls for police reform. The five officers — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin, Desmond Mills Jr., and Justin Smith — were fired from the police force and indicted in state and federal court. Bean, Haley and Smith were found guilty in federal court in October of obstruction of justice through witness tampering related to an attempt to cover up the beating. The officers failed to say that they or their colleagues punched and kicked Nichols and broke Memphis Police Department rules when they did not include complete and accurate statements about what type of force they used. Bean and Smith were acquitted of more serious civil rights charges by the federal jury. Haley was found guilty of violating Nichols' civil rights by causing bodily injury and showing deliberate indifference to medical needs. He was also convicted of conspiracy to witness tamper. Bean and Smith were scheduled to be sentenced on Monday. Haley's sentencing was scheduled for Tuesday, and Martin was scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday. Mills' sentencing was set for June 23. Martin Zummach, Smith's lawyer, referred questions on Norris' recusal to the district court and the U.S. Attorney's Office on Friday. Bean, Haley and Smith were acquitted in May of all state charges, including second-degree murder. The jury for the state trial was chosen in majority-white Hamilton County, which includes Chattanooga, after Judge James Jones Jr. ordered the case be heard from people outside of Shelby County, which includes the majority-Black Memphis. The officers' lawyers had argued that intense publicity made seating a fair jury difficult. Martin and Mills pleaded guilty in federal court last year to violating Nichols' civil rights by causing death and conspiracy to witness tamper. They did not stand trial in federal court with their former colleagues. Martin and Mills also avoided the trial in state court after reaching agreements to plead guilty there. Both Martin and Mills testified in the federal trial, and Mills also took the stand in the state trial. The officers were part of a crime suppression team called the Scorpion Unit that was disbanded weeks after Nichols died. The team targeted illegal drugs and guns, and violent offenders, and sometimes used force against unarmed people. In December, the U.S. Justice Department said a 17-month investigation showed the Memphis Police Department uses excessive force and discriminates against Black people. The investigation also found that the Memphis Police Department conducts unlawful stops, searches, and arrests. In May, the Trump administration announced it was retracting the findings of Justice Department civil rights investigations of police departments, including Memphis, that were issued under the Biden administration. The city has hired a former federal judge and created a task force to address police department reforms. The task force has not announced any recommendations. Nichols' family is suing the five officers, the city of Memphis and the police chief for $550 million. A trial has been scheduled in that case next year. Norris is the judge presiding over that case too. Court records in the lawsuit did not show any order of recusal Friday.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Police arrest around 60 protestors at the Capitol
WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — The U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) arrested around 60 people after a protest at the Supreme Court on Friday. The protest took place one day before the Army's 250th birthday parade and festival, which coincides with President Donald Trump's birthday. Tourists excited for Army's 250th anniversary parade, celebrations USCP said that the demonstration started as a peaceful one, with around 75 people participating. Around 60 people left that location, so officers started to establish a perimeter as a precaution. 'A few people pushed the bike rack down and illegally crossed the police line while running towards the Rotunda Steps. Our officers immediately blocked the group and began making arrests,' USCP said in a statement. Everyone who was arrested will face charges of unlawful demonstration and crossing a police line. Some individuals will also be charged with assault on a police officer and resisting arrest. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hamilton Spectator
an hour ago
- Hamilton Spectator
A Border Patrol agent died in 2009. His widow is still fighting a backlogged US program for benefits
When her husband died after a grueling U.S. Border Patrol training program for new agents, Lisa Afolayan applied for the federal benefits promised to families of first responders whose lives are cut short in the line of duty. Sixteen years later, Afolayan and her two daughters haven't seen a penny, and program officials are defending their decisions to deny them compensation. She calls it a nightmare that too many grieving families experience. 'It just makes me so mad that we are having to fight this so hard,' said Afolayan, whose husband, Nate, had been hired to guard the U.S. border with Mexico in southern California. 'It takes a toll emotionally, and I don't think they care. To them, it's just a business. They're just pushing paper.' Afolayan's case is part of a backlog of claims plaguing the fast-growing Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program. Hundreds of families of deceased and disabled officers are waiting years to learn whether they qualify for the life-changing payments, and more are ultimately being denied, an Associated Press analysis of program data found. The program is falling far short of its goal of deciding claims within one year. Nearly 900 have been pending for longer than that, triple the number from five years earlier, in a backlog that includes cases from nearly every state, according to AP's review, which was based on program data through late April. More than 120 of those claims have been in limbo for at least five years, and roughly a dozen have languished for a decade. 'That is just outrageous that the person has to wait that long,' said Charlie Lauer, the program's general counsel in the 1980s. 'Those poor families.' Justice Department officials, who oversee the program, acknowledge the backlog. They say they're managing a surge in claims — which have more than doubled in the last five years — while making complicated decisions about whether cases meet legal criteria. In a statement, they said 'claims involving complex medical and causation issues, voluminous evidence and conflicting medical opinions take longer to determine, as do claims in various stages of appeal.' It acknowledged a few cases 'continue through the process over ten years.' Program officials wouldn't comment on Afolayan's case. Federal lawyers are asking an appeals court for a second time to uphold their denials, which blame Nate's heat- and exertion-related death on a genetic condition shared by millions of mostly Black U.S. citizens. Supporters say Lisa Afolayan's resilience in pursuing the claim has been remarkable, and grown in significance as training-related deaths like Nate's have risen. 'Your death must fit in their box, or your family's not going to be taken care of,' said Afolayan, of suburban Dallas. Their daughter, Natalee, was 3 when her father died. She recently completed her first year at the University of Texas, without the help of the higher education benefits the program provides. The officers' benefits program is decades old and has paid billions Congress created the Public Safety Officers' Benefits program in 1976, providing a one-time $50,000 payout as a guarantee for those whose loved ones die in the line of duty. The benefit was later set to adjust with inflation; today it pays $448,575. The program has awarded more than $2.4 billion. Early on, claims were often adjudicated within weeks. But the complexity increased in 1990, when Congress extended the program to some disabled officers. A 1998 law added educational benefits for spouses and children. Since 2020, Congress has passed three laws expanding eligibility — to officers who died after contracting COVID-19, first responders who died or were disabled in rescue and cleanup operations from the September 2001 attacks, and some who die by suicide. Today, the program sees 1,200 claims annually, up from 500 in 2019. The wait time for decisions and rate of denials have risen alongside the caseload. Roughly one of every three death and disability claims were rejected over the last year. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and other Republicans recently introduced legislation to require the program to make determinations within 270 days, expressing outrage over the case of an officer disabled in a mass shooting who's waited years for a ruling. Similar legislation died last year. One group representing families, Concerns of Police Survivors, has expressed no such concerns about the program's management. The Missouri-based nonprofit recently received a $6 million grant to continue its longstanding partnership with the Justice Department to serve deceased officers' relatives — including providing counseling, hosting memorial events and assisting with claims. 'We are very appreciative of the PSOB and their work with survivor benefits,' spokesperson Sara Slone said. 'Not all line-of-duty deaths are the same and therefore processing times will differ.' Nate Afolayan dreamed of serving his adopted country Born in Nigeria, Nate Afolayan moved to California with relatives at age 11. He became a U.S. citizen and graduated from California State University a decade later. Lisa met Nate while they worked together at a juvenile probation office. They talked, went out for lunch and felt sparks. 'The next thing you know, we were married with two kids,' she said. He decided to pursue a career in law enforcement once their second daughter was born. Lisa supported him, though she understood the danger. He spent a year working out while applying for jobs and was thrilled when the Border Patrol declared him medically fit; sent him to Artesia, New Mexico, for training; and swore him in. Nate loved his 10 weeks at the academy, Lisa said, despite needing medical treatment several times — he was shot with pepper spray in the face and became dizzy during a water-based drill. His classmates found him to be a natural leader in elite shape and chose him to speak at graduation, they recalled in interviews with investigators. He prepared a speech with the line, 'We are all warriors that stand up and fight for what's right, just and lawful.' But on April 30, 2009 — days before the ceremony — a Border Patrol official called Lisa. Nate, 29, had fainted after his final training run and was hospitalized. It was dusty and 88 degrees in the high desert that afternoon. Agents had to complete the 1.5-mile run in 13 minutes, at an altitude of 3,400 feet. Nate had warned classmates it was too hot to wear their black academy shirts, but they voted to do so anyway, records show. Nate, 29, finished in just over 11 minutes but then struggled to breathe and collapsed. Now Nate was being airlifted to a Lubbock, Texas, hospital for advanced treatment. Lisa booked a last-minute flight, arriving the next day. A doctor told her Nate's organs had shut down and they couldn't save his life. The hospital needed permission to end life-saving efforts. One nurse delivered chest compressions; another held Lisa tightly as she yelled: 'That's it! I can't take it anymore!' Lisa became a single mother. The girls were 3 and 1. Her only comfort, she said, was knowing Nate died living his dream — serving his adopted country. Sickle cell trait was cited in this benefit denial When she first applied for benefits, Lisa included the death certificate that listed heat illness as the cause of Nate's death. The aid could help her family. She'd been studying to become a nurse but had to abandon that plan. She relied on Social Security survivors' benefits and workers' compensation while working at gyms as a trainer or receptionist and dabbling in real estate. The program had paid benefits for a handful of similar training deaths, dating to a Massachusetts officer who suffered heat stroke and dehydration in 1988. But program staff wanted another opinion on Nate's death. They turned to outside forensic pathologist Dr. Stephen Cina. Cina concluded the autopsy overlooked the 'most significant factor': Nate carried sickle cell trait, a condition that's usually benign but has been linked to rare exertion-related deaths in military, sports and law enforcement training . Cina opined that exercising in a hot climate at high altitude triggered a crisis in which Nate's red blood cells became misshapen, depriving his body of oxygen. Cina, who stopped consulting for the benefits program in 2020 after hundreds of case reviews, declined to comment. Nate learned he had the condition, carried by up to 3 million U.S. Black citizens, after a blood test following his second daughter's birth. The former high school basketball player had never experienced any problems. A Border Patrol spokesperson declined to say whether academy leaders knew of the condition, which experts say can be managed with precautions such as staying hydrated, avoiding workouts in extreme temperatures and altitudes, and taking rest breaks. Under the benefit program's rules, Afolayan's death would need to be 'the direct and proximate result' of an injury he suffered on duty to qualify. It couldn't be the result of ordinary physical strain. The program in 2012 rejected the claim, saying the hot, dry, high climate was one factor, but not the most important. It had been more than two years since Lisa Afolayan applied and three since Nate's death. Lisa Afolayan's appeal was not common Most rejected applicants don't exercise their option to appeal to an independent hearing officer, saying they can't afford attorneys or want to get on with their lives. But Lisa Afolayan appealed with help from a border patrol union. A one-day hearing was held in late 2012. The hearing officer denied her claim more than a year later, saying the 'perfect storm' of factors causing the death didn't include a qualifying injury. Lisa and her daughters moved from California to Texas. They visited the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, where they saw Nate's name. Four years passed without an update on the claim. Lisa learned the union had failed to exercise its final appeal, to the program director, due to an oversight. The union didn't respond to AP emails seeking comment. Then she met Suzie Sawyer, founder and retired executive director of Concerns of Police Survivors. Sawyer had recently helped win a long battle to obtain benefits in the death of another federal agent who'd collapsed during training. 'I said, 'Lisa, this could be the fight of your life, and it could take forever,'' Sawyer recalled. ''Are you willing to do it?' She goes, 'hell yes.'' The two persuaded the program to hear the appeal even though the deadline had passed. They introduced a list of similar claims that had been granted and new evidence: A Tennessee medical examiner concluded the hot, dry environment and altitude were key factors causing Nate's organ-system failure. But the program was unmoved. The acting Bureau of Justice Assistance director upheld the denial in 2020. Such rulings usually aren't public, but Lisa fumed as she learned through contacts about some whose deaths qualified, including a trooper who had an allergic reaction to a bee sting, an intoxicated FBI agent who crashed his car, and another officer with sickle cell trait who died after a training run on a hot day. Today, an appeal is still pending In 2022, Lisa thought she might have finally prevailed when a federal appeals court ordered the program to take another look at her application. A three-judge panel said the program erred by failing to consider whether the heat, humidity and altitude during the run were 'the type of unusual or out-of-the-ordinary climatic conditions that would qualify.' The judges also said it may have been illegal to rely on sickle cell trait for the denial under a federal law prohibiting employers from discrimination on the basis of genetic information. It was great timing: The girls were in high school and could use the monthly benefit of $1,530 to help pay for college. The family's Social Security and workers' compensation benefits would end soon. But the program was in no hurry. Nearly two years passed without a ruling despite inquiries from Afolayan and her lawyer. The Bureau of Justice Assistance director upheld the denial in February 2024, ruling that the climate on that day 15 years earlier wasn't 'unusually adverse.' The decision concluded the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act didn't apply since the program wasn't Afolayan's employer. Arnold & Porter, a Washington law firm now representing Afolayan pro bono, has appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Her attorney John Elwood said the program has gotten bogged down in minutiae while losing sight of the bigger picture: that an officer died during mandatory training. He said government lawyers are fighting him just as hard, 'if not harder,' than on any other case he's handled. Months after filing their briefs, oral arguments haven't been set. 'This has been my life for 16 years,' Lisa Afolayan said. 'Sometimes I just chuckle and keep moving because what else am I going to do?' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
