Man suspected of killing mother of his child, Milwaukee police say

A 49-year-old man is suspected of killing the mother of his child who was found dead inside a Milwaukee home, police said Thursday.

The woman's identity has not been released publicly, pending notification of family, and her cause of death remains under investigation, said Sgt. Tim Gauerke, department spokesman.

He confirmed investigators believe this is a domestic-violence homicide.

The woman's body was discovered about 1 p.m. Wednesday inside a home in the 4700 block of W. Brentwood Ave.

Court records show she had sought a restraining order against the suspect in late April, but that a court commissioner denied an injunction after a hearing May 10. On Monday, the victim had asked a circuit judge to rehear the petition, and it was scheduled for a new hearing June 22.

Police had gone to the house to search for the man, who was wanted in a child abuse case and had been accused of previously striking their 5-year-old son, according to police.

The man was believed to be armed with a gun when police went to the home, which prompted the department's Tactical Enforcement Unit and crisis negotiators to respond, too. 

The man was arrested later by Milwaukee police in Racine County.

On average, there's a domestic violence homicide in Wisconsin every week. A federal survey showed more than 700,000 women in Wisconsin have experienced domestic abuse — a number higher than the entire population of Milwaukee. 

Bruce Vielmetti of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

HELP IS AVAILABLE

The Sojourner Family Peace Center in Milwaukee operates a 24-hour confidential hotline at (414) 933-2722. The National Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 1-800-799-7233.