Milwaukee police chased a stolen vehicle early Friday, only to have a supervisor terminate the pursuit after occupants of the stolen vehicle fired shots at the pursuing officers, Wisconsin Right Now has exclusively learned.

According to Milwaukee Police, the investigation is ongoing, and they continue to seek unknown suspects.

The department’s decision to stop a pursuit of people shooting at cops did not sit well with some in law enforcement. According to sources, the pursuit was terminated by a sergeant. When we asked MPD about this, the department gave us a statement that read: “The pursuit ended when it was terminated by a supervisor.”

According to Milwaukee Police, on Friday, January 6, 2023, at approximately 2:42 a.m., while in the 3100 block of N. Sherman Boulevard, Milwaukee officers observed a vehicle in a park that drove off at a high rate of speed as the squad approached.

The vehicle continued to drive recklessly and officers attempted to make stop the vehicle. The driver refused to stop and a vehicle pursuit ensued, the police statement reads.

During the pursuit, the occupants of the stolen vehicle fired several shots at officers in the area of N. 100th Street and W. Capitol Drive., the police statement says.

The vehicle, which was stolen out of West Bend was later found unoccupied in Milwaukee, according to the police statement.

The MPD’s pursuit policy was revised in July 2022. It says, in part, that officers can pursue a vehicle when the occupant(s) “has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a violent felony (e.g., armed robbery, recklessly endangering safety, and other crimes against a person in which violence is an element to the felony offense)…”

Read the policy here: 660-VEHICLEPURSUITSANDEMERGENCYVEHICLEOPERATIONS1