Sylville Smith was a resident of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was a father of a two-year-old son. He attended Pulaski High School and Riverside University High School. His parents are Mildred Hayes and Patrick Smith.

On August 13, 2016, Sylville Smith was killed in a shooting by Milwaukee Police officer, Dominique Heaggan-Brown after fleeing from a traffic stop. The killing sparked protests which later lead to the 2016 Milwaukee Riot. During the riots, three businesses were burned down as well as Milwaukee Police squad cars. During the riot, a Milwaukee Police were hit with a brick and many cars and businesses were vandalized with bricks and rocks.

Milwaukee Police say Sylville was armed with a stolen handgun when he fled a traffic stop about 3:30 p.m. Saturday near W. Auer Ave. and N. 44th St. The officer ordered Smith to drop his gun and when he did not, the officer fired and wounded the man in the chest and arm. Sylville later died of his injuries.

Another man was arrested with Smith named Demario D. Pritchard, according to police records and sources.

Earlier this year Pritchard, 24, was found guilty of felony possession of cocaine.

Online court records show he lived in Green Bay.

The handgun was stolen in a March burglary in Waukesha, Wisconsin a suburb of Milwaukee. The owner reported that 500 rounds of ammunition also were stolen.

Mildred, Sylville's mother had said, “My son is gone due to the police killing my son,” she said Sunday.

“I am lost.”

Mildred said her son had recently gotten his concealed carry license because he had been shot twice and robbed four times and was stripped of all his clothes during one robbery.

Mildred said she last saw her son about 12:30 p.m. Saturday when he and another man were stopped by Milwaukee Police. She said she missed a call from him at 3 p.m. when she thinks he was being chased by police.

Mildred said she called him back, but he didn't answer.

She then got a call from someone who told her what was happening.

She said she raced over to the area of N. Sherman Blvd.

and W. Auer Ave., but couldn't find out what was going on.

"They wouldn't let me see him," she said of police.

She said she doesn't think her son would pull a weapon on police.

She said she could envision him running and hiding.

Sylville's godmother, Katherine Mahmoud said "I'm not going to say he was an angel.

He was out here living his life."

She also said that the family had nothing to do with the riots overnight.

She said“We’re not very happy about it,” said of the unrest.

Darin Ware, 51, a former security guard at the Mary Ryan Boys & Girls Club, remembered Smith coming to the club when he was about 12.

"He was always kind of a troubled kid,” Ware said.

“He was a fun kid but he was not without issues."

"We deal that with him as best we could, even though we could have kicked him out a hundred times," he added.

Ware grew up in Sherman Park and knows many people here.

"Without knowing all the details I don’t want to say he was at fault or the police were at fault,” Ware said.

“It's just a shame"

Sylville does not have a felony criminal record.

However, he was charged and arrested for multiple felonies.

He was also convicted of carrying a concealed weapon, which is a misdemeanor.

In 2015, Sylville was charged with charged last year in a shooting and then charged again, with trying to intimidate a witness in that same shooting.

Sylville was charged with first-degree recklessly endangering safety and with witness intimidation, but the charges were dismissed, court records show.

The charges were dropped, however the prosecutors had recorded jail calls in which Smith asked his girlfriend to pressure the victim to recant, according to court records.

In the witness intimidation case, Smith was accused of pressuring the victim in a shooting to recant a statement identifying him as the suspect, according to the criminal complaint.

The shooting charges were dropped after the witness recanted their statement and failed to cooperate with authorities.