Bucks' Sterling Brown won't face charges after arrest, police reviewing response
Milwaukee police announced Monday that they will not file charges against Sterling Brown stemming from an incident last week in which police arrested and Tased the Milwaukee Bucks rookie outside a Walgreen’s, and that the department’s internal affairs division will review officers’ response to the situation.
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Reports began to circulate last Friday that, after finding a car parked across two handicapped spaces in a Walgreen’s parking lot, city police “were writing a parking ticket on Brown’s Mercedes when Brown confronted them and became combative.” They responded by using a Taser on him and booking him for resisting arrest.
“Milwaukee Police were conducting a business check around 2:00 a.m. on January 26th at Walgreens located at S. 26th Street and W. National Avenue when they encountered a vehicle parked across two disability parking spaces,” Milwaukee Police Sgt. Tim Gauerke told Yahoo Sports in a statement last Friday. “Officers spoke with a 22-year-old male and during the incident an electronic control device was deployed and the man was arrested. The circumstances of the incident and the use of force are currently being reviewed by the Department.”
That review revealed that Brown’s “actions and behavior” did not warrant a criminal charge, police say. The 22-year-old will not face the “tentative misdemeanor charge of resisting or obstructing an officer” on which he was arrested, or any other charges in the matter. From Ashley Luthern of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
After an internal review and viewing police body camera footage, police officials decided not to refer Brown to prosecutors for criminal charges, police spokesman Sgt. Tim Gauerke said in an email late Monday.
“Furthermore, the Department is reviewing the police response including supervisory oversight,” Gauerke said.
The matter has been sent to Internal Affairs and when that investigation is complete, the findings and camera footage will be released, he said.
Brown, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard out of SMU picked by the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round of the 2017 NBA draft and later traded to Milwaukee, declined to comment on the matter before the Bucks’ Friday night game against the Brooklyn Nets.
“It’s an issue I’m dealing with right now. That’s all I really want to say right now,” he said, according to Milwaukee FOX affiliate WITI. “It’s being handled. I’d appreciate it if you all respect that right now.”
“We do support Sterling completely,” said interim Bucks head coach Joe Prunty, who took the reins of the team after last week’s firing of Jason Kidd.
Brown, the younger brother of former NBA player Shannon Brown, has continued to play since his arrest. He scored four points with nine rebounds against Brooklyn on Friday, 12 points with six boards and two steals against the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, and 10 points against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.
The former second-team all-AAC selection, for whose draft rights the Bucks paid the Sixers $1.9 million, has worked his way into the perimeter rotation for Milwaukee, averaging 20.8 minutes per game over his last 11 appearances. The Bucks have won four straight since firing Kidd to improve to 27-22 on the season, good for fifth place in the East and just 2 1/2 games back of the third-place Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Dan Devine is a writer and editor for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at devine@oath.com or follow him on Twitter!
