Michael T. Jackson, a 39-year-old man from Milwaukee who was also known as “Mike Lee,” was shot and killed during the early morning hours of August 28, 2026, near North 27th Street and West Walnut Street. Family members remembered Jackson as a loving person and a devoted father, and said the shooting happened on his son’s birthday. What initially appeared to be an unexplained drive-by shooting soon developed into a homicide investigation centered on a dispute involving a vehicle and
property that had allegedly been taken.
Milwaukee police were alerted by ShotSpotter activations shortly before 3:45 a.m., with gunfire detected at approximately 3:43 a.m. and again two minutes later near 2630 West Walnut Street. Officers responding to the area found Jackson and another person suffering from gunshot wounds. Jackson had been struck multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 4:15 a.m. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office later determined that he died from multiple gunshot wounds and classified the death as a homicide. The second victim, who was wounded in the lower body, was taken to a hospital and survived.
The surviving victim told investigators that he had been working at a food truck near 27th and Walnut when Jackson arrived and began talking with him. As the two later walked toward Jackson’s vehicle, a sedan described as gray approached alongside them. According to the witness, the passenger-side window came down and gunfire erupted. He recalled hearing roughly seven or eight shots before the vehicle sped east on Walnut Street. Investigators processing the scene ultimately recovered 19 spent 9mm cartridge casings, consistent with the number of shots detected by the city’s gunshot-detection system.
Detectives began reconstructing the movements of vehicles in the neighborhood using surveillance recordings and Flock license-plate-reader cameras. Video reportedly showed a Ford Focus repeatedly circling the area before the shooting and leaving shortly afterward. Investigators narrowed the vehicle to a tan 2005-2007 Ford Focus distinguished by a black rear bumper and temporary registration plate. Law-enforcement records connected the vehicle to 34-year-old Milwaukee resident Lexus Ford, leading investigators to focus on him as a suspect.
According to the criminal complaint, Ford told detectives that earlier that night he had lost his keys and that his Jeep was subsequently taken. He later located the Jeep only a few blocks away and claimed that people were removing property from it. When investigators showed him a photograph of Jackson, Ford identified Jackson as one of the people he believed had been taking items from the Jeep. Ford reportedly said he was extremely angry over what had happened and also claimed that a firearm that had been kept inside the Jeep was among the missing property. Prosecutors alleged that the dispute over the Jeep and its contents preceded the shooting near the food truck.
Investigators also obtained information from people who knew Ford. According to the complaint, one associate described Ford as emotional and crying when they encountered him after the shooting. The associate told police that Ford acknowledged shooting someone following the incident involving his vehicle and indicated that he believed he needed to leave the area. Ford’s former girlfriend also told investigators that he contacted her after the incident, discussed his Jeep having been taken, and admitted that he had shot someone. Those statements, along with surveillance footage, vehicle information and the physical evidence collected from the shooting scene, became significant pieces of the prosecution’s case.
On September 8, 2026, prosecutors filed charges against Lexus Ford in connection with Jackson’s death and the wounding of the surviving victim. Ford was charged with first-degree reckless homicide while using a dangerous weapon, first-degree reckless injury while using a dangerous weapon, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. At the time of the shooting, Ford was reportedly already free on bail in an unrelated Waukesha County felony drug case and had a prior felony conviction that prohibited him from legally possessing a firearm.
Ford appeared in Milwaukee County Circuit Court on September 10, where cash bond was set at $250,000. The case remained in its early stages, with further bond and preliminary-hearing proceedings scheduled. The online reporting reviewed through September 23, 2026, did not identify a completed trial or conviction in Jackson’s homicide. Ford therefore remains accused of the offenses, and the allegations against him have not yet been established by a final criminal judgment.
