Charges in killing of 3-year-old
Antonio Bratcher faces multiple counts in the fatal shooting of Brooklyn Harris.
As a gunshot shattered the back window of a mother’s car, she turned and saw her 3-year-old daughter fall in the backseat. She ordered the three other children in the backseat to get on the rear floorboards.
Those frantic moments are detailed in a criminal complaint issued Wednesday charging Antonio D. Bratcher, 39, with first-degree reckless homicide in the death of 3-year-old Brooklyn Harris, who was shot in the head Saturday in what police at the time called an apparent road rage incident. Brooklyn was pronounced dead at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.
Bratcher also is charged with five counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, with use of a dangerous weapon, for each of the other individuals in the car: Brooklyn’s mother, her adult friend, her adult friend’s child, and Brooklyn’s two siblings. The children were ages 1, 2 and 4.
The adult friend of Brooklyn’s mother identified Bratcher in a photo lineup, according to the complaint.
The defendant is also charged with being a felon in possession of a gun. Bratcher has not been legally allowed to own or possess guns since 1998 when he was convicted and sentenced to prison for two armed robberies at JJ’s Diner and a George Webb restaurant.
The complaint charges Bratcher with fleeing or eluding an officer after the shooting, in a chase reaching speeds of more than 70 mph and going through multiple stop signs.
Bratcher’s SUV crashed and tipped over in the 1600 block of North 26th Street, according to the complaint. A witness saw him leave the vehicle and flee on foot.
Bratcher was found by police in the 1600 block of North 27th Street during a house-to-house search near the crash
site. He fled again and was caught on North 28th Street and arrested.
The SUV was registered to Bratcher’s girlfriend, according to a search warrant. Officers found multiple documents and pieces of mail with Bratcher’s name on them, the complaint says. Bratcher’s right palm print was found on the driver’s door of the SUV. The vehicle matched the description provided by victims in the case.
Police located two .45-caliber casings in the street at the shooting site. In the SUV, officers located a .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol with an unspent cartridge in the chamber. They also found a pistol magazine loaded with eight .45-caliber cartridges. Police found the defendant’s left thumbprint on the magazine. A single spent .45-caliber casing also was recovered from inside the vehicle.
Bratcher faces up to 65 years in the Wisconsin prison system for the reckless homicide charge. He can receive up to 12 years and 6 months prison time, as well as a fine of up to $25,000, for each of the reckless endangerment charges. His alleged use of a dangerous weapon in those charges can add up to five years for each charge.
Being a felon in a possession of a firearm carries a penalty of up to 10 years and a fine of up to $25,000. His charge of fleeing an officer has a maximum prison sentence of 3 years and 6 months, as well as a fine of up to $10,000.