Two suspects in July 4 shooting that injured 3 people face decades in prison
RACINE, WI — Two men suspected in a July 4 shooting are now in custody in the Racine County Jail, and both face a laundry list of felony charges that could land them behind bars for several decades.
Perreyon Townsend, 24, Milwaukee, and Jashawn Williams, 25, Kenosha, both remain in custody on a $50,000 cash bond after criminal charges were filed earlier this week in Racine County Circuit Court.
Both men face three felony counts each of first-degree reckless injury and one felony count of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, both with the use of a dangerous weapon.
Townsend also faces one felony charge of possession of a firearm as a repeat-offender, while Williams faces 12 felony bail-jumping charges.
If convicted of all five charges, Townsend faces a maximum possible prison term of 97 years, six months and a total fine of $350,000. Williams faces a maximum prison term of 109 years, six months and a total fine of $245,000.
Court records show that $100,000 arrest warrants were issued Oct. 9 for both defendants, and they were returned on those warrants two days later.
Shooting sends three people to the hospitalAccording to the criminal complaint:
Officers with the Mount Pleasant Police Department were dispatched July 5 at 2:29 a.m. to the 2200 block of Racine Street for a report of a shooting.
When they arrived, police observed more than 60 people running around in the parking lot and roadways, and several vehicles drove away from the area. Three people were shot during the incident.
One woman was found in the roadway with a gunshot wound to the upper right side of her back, and she was taken to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa, while a second victim was found in a parking lot in the 2100 block of Racine Street with a gunshot wound to her right upper chest.
That victim stated she believed there were three shooters, who ran out from the alley. Police later learned the victim had two gunshot wounds, and she also was taken to Froedtert Hospital.
Thought he heard fireworksA third victim walked into a nearby emergency room with a gunshot wound to his right forearm elbow area. He told police he was with a group of people and thought there were fireworks going off, but realized they were gunshots.
The man stated he ran from the area, felt something hit his arm, then got into a vehicle and was driven to the hospital. He also said he did not see the shooter and didn't know who was responsible.
In addition to the three victims, four different vehicles sustained damage from bullets. Police found approximately 36 spent casings behind one business and three more at the intersection of Racine and 22nd streets.
Video surveillance showed three suspects walking south through an alley, then two of them continued on that path where dozens of fired casings were found. The third suspect went east toward an area where police found two casings.
Police also reviewed another video, which showed a fourth suspect, who emerged from the area where the victims were located. That suspect appeared to have returned fire toward the location of the third suspect. Ballistics ties casings together.
Ballistics analysis of the casings showed there likely were three different guns used by the three suspects in the alleyway and a fourth from the other suspect. On July 24, police were notified that one of the firearms used likely was the same as a shooting incident three days before in Kenosha.
In that Kenosha shooting, an unknown person shot Williams, and, according to Kenosha Police, several people came out of a residence and returned fire. It was also revealed that Williams had been brought to a hospital in a vehicle with the same plate as one located by a camera headed toward Racine on July 5.
Police recovered Williams' cell phone during the Kenosha shooting, which showed photographs of him in the same clothing as the person identified as Suspect No. 1 in the Mount Pleasant shooting. Another image taken July 4 at 5:46 p.m. showed Townsend in the same clothing as the person identified as Suspect No. 2 in Mount Pleasant.
Cell phone data records from both Williams and Townsend showed both phones entered Mount Pleasant on July 5 at around 1:37 p.m. Williams' phone showed it was in the general area of the shooting there, and then 10 minutes after the shooting, it is somewhere in the Kenosha area.
Townsend's device records show that it was coming from Kenosha and crossing into Mount Pleasant around 1:37 p.m. The phone appeared to be powered down from 2:01 to 2:47 a.m., when it located back into Kenosha.
In addition, police reported that Townsend was seen on a cell phone video displaying a Glock with a blue laser sight, the same firearm and sight shown in the Mount Pleasant shooting.
Investigators stated they are not sure who the target of the shooting was, but know that Williams is associated with the Kenosha ATM gang and that both defendants are close associates.
Police also reported that many gang members were in the group of people shot at that night and are aware there has been a conflict between the Kenosha ATM and Dirty P's gangs.
Mount Pleasant Police Sgt. Shawn Leonard confirmed the shooting remains under investigation. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the MPPD investigative unit at (262) 664-7938.
Local newsThe Racine County Eye is your source for local news that serves our diverse communities. Subscribe today to stay up-to-date with local news.
