On an autumn day in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a dispute between associates turned deadly, claiming the life of 36-year-old Terry Dotson, a Black/African American male. The events leading to the fatal shooting on October 21, 2015, began with a heated argument over gas money, which tragically escalated throughout the day.
Earlier on that Wednesday, Terry Dotson was with his girlfriend and an associate, Terrell Dawon Essex, driving in Essex's car.
An argument over gas money led to Essex pulling out a semiautomatic gun and threatening Dotson. Although the situation seemed to de-escalate and the men parted ways, the conflict was far from over. After Dotson and his girlfriend returned to her apartment, she realized her phone was still in Essex's vehicle and asked Dotson to call him to have it returned.
The final, fatal confrontation occurred outside the girlfriend's apartment building. Following the earlier altercation, gunshots rang out. Witnesses found Terry Dotson on the ground, having been fatally shot. Another individual was also wounded during the incident. While no one saw the actual shooting, witness accounts from the day's earlier events quickly pointed investigators toward Terrell Essex.
Terrell Essex was subsequently arrested and charged with first-degree reckless homicide by use of a dangerous weapon as a party to a crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. A crucial piece of evidence in the case against him came from an unrelated incident months prior. Bullet casings found in Essex's car after he was the victim of a drive-by shooting in May 2015 were matched by the Wisconsin State Crime Lab to the bullets that killed Dotson. This ballistic evidence, combined with witness testimony about Essex possessing a gun and threatening the victim on the day of the murder, solidified the case against him. Essex was convicted of the charges, and his subsequent appeal in 2018 was denied.
