Destiny Carter

The life of Destiny Carter, a 22-year-old Black woman from Milwaukee, was cut short by gunfire on the morning of September 11, 2023. The shooting happened inside an apartment on the city’s north side, leaving a community to mourn her sudden and violent death.

Around 6 a.m., police responded to the New Hampton Gardens Apartments near 24th and Hampton. Inside one of the units, they discovered Destiny Carter in a bedroom. She had suffered two gunshot wounds to her head and was pronounced dead at the scene. A man was also injured during the incident and was taken by ambulance to a hospital to be treated for a laceration.

Officers who were in the area for an unrelated matter heard a commotion and witnessed a chaotic scene unfolding outside. A naked man covered in blood was standing near a minivan, yelling at a woman inside not to leave. The man was holding a gun, which he dropped when police approached. The woman in the van, identified as 31-year-old Michelle Silas, was with her three children. After getting out of the vehicle, Silas reportedly told officers, "I didn't meant to shoot," and "I didn't try to."

Silas was arrested and later charged with first-degree intentional homicide. According to the criminal complaint filed by prosecutors, Silas arrived at the apartment and found Carter having sex with the father of her children. The man told investigators that Silas was in the room for about 10 minutes before the shooting began. The complaint alleges that when Silas shot Carter in the back of the head, Carter bit the man, causing the injury for which he was treated. After the shooting, Silas ran from the room and gathered her children to leave.

Michelle Silas made her initial court appearance on Friday, September 15, 2023. A judge set her cash bond at $100,000. As of that month, the case against her was proceeding through the Milwaukee County court system.