In the thick of a Milwaukee summer, a simmering August day turned deadly for 41-year-old Robert DaQuan “Quan” Taylor, a Black male. On August 9, 2018, a confrontation that had been brewing earlier in the day reached its violent end at a Citgo gas station located at North 27th Street and West Capitol Drive. Taylor was fatally shot, and two other men were wounded in the exchange of gunfire.
The incident was one of a string of violent episodes that marked a grim period for the city.
The events leading up to the fatal shooting involved a prior dispute. Fearing for his brother's safety, Curtis Fisher had accompanied Taylor to the gas station, hoping to de-escalate the situation and return the guns his brother had acquired. However, their arrival at the gas station led to a shootout. Surveillance footage from the scene showed that Taylor had fired his weapon first.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the investigation took a turn that highlighted the complexities of street justice and self-defense. The man who shot and killed Taylor was not charged with homicide, as prosecutors determined he had acted in self-defense after Taylor initiated the gunfire. This decision left Taylor's family grappling with a sense of injustice, as they felt the shooter still bore responsibility for the day's tragic events.
While the shooter was not charged in Taylor's death, the legal repercussions of the incident fell upon his brother. Curtis Fisher, who was present during the shootout, ultimately faced a felony charge for illegal possession of a firearm. This outcome underscored the tragic and often tangled consequences of gun violence in the community, leaving one family to mourn a loss while another member faced the justice system.
