Charges filed in Brownstone lounge slaying
Suspect in shooting of employee still at large
Prosecutors have filed charges against a Sussex man in connection with the fatal shooting of an employee at Brownstone Social Lounge, a popular downtown Milwaukee bar.
Jordan M. Tate, 25, faces charges of first-degree reckless homicide and two counts of first-degree reckless injury in the Feb. 10 shooting that killed Krystal N. Tucker, 31, and injured two of her coworkers. Tate is not in custody, according to online court records.
The criminal complaint filed Monday repeated details that the bar included in a Facebook post hours after the incident: that the shooter had been denied access to the bar because of its age restrictions and, after being escorted away, produced a gun and started firing.
Tate’s girlfriend of six years, who attempted to enter the bar with him, identified him to police, the complaint said.
The bar, located at 524 N. Water St., restricts access to those younger than 27 “to avoid the far too often unpredictable violence associated with that demographic,” the Facebook post said.
A manager at the bar told police the shooter turned belligerent when she tried to explain the policy to him, the complaint said. Surveillance video showed the suspect being “pushed” from the lounge by security. Once outside, he began firing into the doorway.
Tucker suffered gunshot wounds to both arms and her chest, according to the complaint. A relative of hers, Deja Davis, said Tucker had worked at the bar for less than three years.
The shooting prompted a number of reactions on social media, with many people calling the bar one of their favorites in Milwaukee and others describing Tucker as someone who made them feel welcome there.
“That was a fun job for her,” Davis said. “It was the atmosphere, the music. She loved to sing, so they would have open mic.
“To see her lose her life at a young, tender age to a senseless crime, it breaks my heart.”
Arguments were the most commonly cited primary cause behind homicides and non-fatal shootings in both 2020 and 2021, accounting for roughly a third of them, according to the Milwaukee Homicide Review Commission.
As of Sunday, Milwaukee police reported 34 homicides in 2022, compared with 16 as of the same date in 2021.