Police ID man killed in Jack's Apple Pub shooting
Did you know Jimmie Montel Sanders? Reach out to reporter Madeleine Behr at 920-996-7226 or mbehr@gannett.com.
APPLETON - The man shot and killed by an Appleton police officer early Sunday morning at a downtown bar has been identified as Jimmie Montel Sanders.
READ MORE: Who was Jimmie Montel Sanders?
The Green Bay Police Department and the Outagamie County Coroner’s Office identified the 33-year-old Sanders, according to a statement released Monday evening by Appleton Police Chief Todd Thomas. Sanders' last known address was in Milwaukee, but Thomas said Sanders had been staying with friends in Appleton.
Sanders was shot by Lt. Jay Steinke after gunfire erupted during a scuffle about 1:40 a.m. inside Jack's Apple Pub.
Thomas told reporters on Sunday that preliminary information indicates the shooting grew from an encounter in the bar in which a man shot his gun at least once at another man. The other man wrestled the gunman as bar patrons ran out of the building, according to Thomas.
Officers were on the sidewalk outside the bar when people started running out of the establishment, saying that there was a man inside shooting, Thomas said. Steinke went into the South State Street entrance, saw a man with a gun and fired his weapon at him. Steinke then sought cover outside the building. Sanders was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Authorities have not stated whether Sanders is the same person who is accused of shooting inside the bar or whether he was the man wrestling the gun away.
Two men inside the bar were taken to the hospital with injuries. It appeared that one man had a gunshot wound to his arm, while the second man suffered a shoulder injury "but was not struck by gunfire," Thomas said. No officers were injured.
On Monday, Thomas released a statement to reporters saying that police continue to get "conflicting statements" about what happened on Sunday.
"It is extremely important that we don’t make assumptions about what occurred based on preliminary and conflicting statements," Thomas said. "It is very important that critical interviews that need to be done yet are not tainted, or could even be perceived as being tainted."
Thomas said no further details will be released until the investigation concludes unless there are significant developments
"We all want an investigation that is professional, thorough, timely and credible," Thomas said. "The Green Bay Police Department is leading the investigation so, appropriately, we don’t have access to a lot of the detailed information. The details that we do know we will not release, including what may have occurred in the bar, the descriptions of who was involved, their actions, the number of rounds fired and many other details. If this information was released it would impact the credibility of the entire investigation, which would be a disservice to everyone involved and our community."
Steinke is on administrative leave until the investigation is complete, Thomas added. A second officer on the scene is on administrative leave until his interview is complete.
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Appleton Mayor Tim Hanna told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin on Monday that he's spoken to Thomas three times since Sunday morning. He said the incident shows why it's important to have policies in place — including plans for outside agencies to handle investigations — so things run as smoothly as possible.
"My heart goes out to the people who are immediately affected, my heart goes out to our officers who have to deal with this, but, you know, it's done," Hanna said. "So let's do the right thing in following up. The Green Bay department and our department are working hand-in-hand and getting the facts straight so they can conclude the investigation."
Meanwhile, Tracy Schmoeker, a bartender who was at Jack's Apple Pub at the time of the shooting, wouldn't go into specifics about the fight or the shooting when USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin visited the College Avenue bar on Monday, but she did talk generally about the aftermath.
"It could have been a disaster," she said. "... But (Steinke) did his job."
Steinke is a 28-year veteran with the Appleton Police Department who often worked foot patrols in the downtown district.
Schmoeker said she didn't plan on talking to reporters about the incident, but seeing posts on social media condemning Steinke, an officer who is well-known on the College Avenue beat, made her speak up.
"A lot of people harp on (Steinke), but he put his life on the line," Schmoeker said.
John Greiner, owner of Jack's Apple Pub, declined comment Monday on the shooting incident.
The Green Bay Police Department is handling the investigation, per state law that requires an outside agency to investigate officer-involved deaths.
Alderwoman Patti Coenen, whose district includes Jack's, said she learned of the shooting early Sunday morning when she was walking downtown.
"I cannot tell you how sick to my stomach I was" at seeing the Green Bay Police Department truck on College Avenue, Coenen said. Seeing that truck made her realize it was likely a police shooting, she said.
"These are men and women who go to work every day who don't know what the day will bring," Coenen said of police officers.
Beyond the immediate impact of a fatal shooting, Coenen said she is concerned about how the incident will reflect on downtown Appleton, which has been transformed over the past decade and a half into an entertainment destination and is now seeing a new exhibition center being built, which is expected to draw thousands of additional visitors each year.
"I wouldn't gauge the entire downtown on one event," she said. "Downtown is a friendly, great place to be. I don't want this to overshadow all of the great things."
Madeleine Behr: 920-996-7226, or mbehr@postcrescent.com; on Twitter @madeleinebehr; Alison Dirr: 920-996-7266 or adirr@gannett.com; on Twitter @AlisonDirr.