On an April evening in 2022, the life of Tayvon Luckett, a 24-year-old Black/African American man, was tragically cut short in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The father of eight was outside a gas station convenience store near the intersection of Fond du Lac and Locust on April 14 when the fatal encounter occurred. Luckett had just purchased pizza rolls and was leaving the store when he was shot and killed.
The incident left his family, including three of his children who were present that night, devastated.
The investigation into Luckett's death quickly focused on a suspect named Kenneth Twyman. The case against Twyman was complicated by the fact that the external security cameras at the gas station were not operational at the time of the shooting. Prosecutors had to rely on eyewitness accounts, most notably from Luckett's girlfriend who was at the scene. According to her testimony, it appeared the two men exchanged a handshake just moments before the gunshots rang out. Twyman, who had a history with the law and had been featured on Wisconsin's "Most Wanted" list, fled the scene after the shooting.
After a three-month manhunt, U.S. Marshals located and arrested Twyman in the city of Oak Creek. During his trial, Twyman admitted to shooting Luckett but claimed it was an act of self-defense. He testified that he owed Luckett $150 for a past drug transaction involving cocaine. Twyman alleged that on the night of the shooting, he attempted to shake Luckett's hand, but Luckett refused and was holding a gun. Twyman claimed that Luckett then said, "This is how people die," prompting him to fire his weapon until Luckett was on the ground.
In March 2023, a jury rejected Twyman's self-defense argument and found him guilty of first-degree reckless homicide. Though not the initial charge of first-degree intentional homicide, the conviction brought a measure of closure to Luckett's grieving family. A judge subsequently sentenced Kenneth Twyman to 35 years in state prison, with an additional 15 years of extended supervision to follow his release. Twyman also faced separate federal charges for drug and gun offenses, resulting in a 10-year federal prison sentence that he would serve at the same time as his state sentence.
