Dennis Carter, 54, male, left his rooming house on a warm Sunday evening and ended up on the pavement near West McKinley Avenue and North 21st Street, just before 9 p.m. on July 13, 2025. Neighbors and passersby gathered as police arrived to find him mortally wounded; despite quick attempts to help, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators marked the 2100 block with evidence placards, noting a 9mm casing, an unfired cartridge, and the victim's cellphone, while the Milwaukee County
Medical Examiner later confirmed he died of multiple gunshot wounds. The initial alerts that night and into the next day described detectives canvassing the area and seeking information about whoever was responsible.
In the days that followed, the picture sharpened. According to a criminal complaint summarized by local reporters, detectives learned of a dispute involving rent money and focused on a 52-year-old woman, Tammy Goodman. Witness accounts in the complaint described a confrontation by Carter's car an argument escalating until the shooter approached with a handgun and fired twice before fleeing. Police soon stopped Goodman's SUV; records say her phone was recovered, and a subsequent review of recorded calls from the Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility captured her discussing the incident in blunt terms.
Prosecutors charged Goodman with first-degree reckless homicide and possession of a firearm by a felon. An initial court appearance was set the same week the charges were filed, while investigators continued to piece together the sequence leading to the shots fired at 8:47 p.m. near 21st and McKinley. Early public notices had appealed for tips; by week's end, police and prosecutors said they had their suspect, and the case moved into the courts.
