JS Online: 5 charged in election-day tire slashings

JS Online: 5 charged in election-day tire slashings

Sons of prominent Milwaukee politicians among those facing felonies

By DERRICK NUNNALLY

dnunnally@journalsentinel.com

Posted: Jan. 24, 2005



Milwaukee County District Attorney E. Michael McCann announced this morning that five of the seven men arrested in the election-day slashing of Republican vehicles' tires - including the sons of two prominent Milwaukee Democratic politicians - have been charged with felonies and will appear in court this afternoon.

49024Election Day Vandalism

Photo/AP

First-term U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore accompanies her son, Sowande Omokunde, at his court appearance Monday.

Recent Coverage

1/22/05: Expect tire-slashing charges Monday

1/18/05: Spivak & Bice: Charges imminent in election day tire slashing

11/11/04: Police arrest ex-mayor's son in tire-slashing

11/10/04: FBI starts own probe of vandalism of GOP vehicles

11/4/04: Spivak & Bice: Tire-slashing questions await Democrats' sons

11/2/04: Republican rental vehicles vandalized



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The five who were charged with felony criminal damage to property for slashing 40 tires on 25 vehicles are:



* Michael Pratt, 32, of the 400 block of N. 16th St., Milwaukee. Pratt is the son of former acting mayor Marvin Pratt.



* Sowande A. Omokunde, 25, of the 4000 block of N. 19th Place, Milwaukee. Omokunde is the son of U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore.



* Lewis G. Caldwell, 28, of the 2900 block of N. Summit Ave., Milwaukee.



* Lavelle Mohammad, 35, of the 4700 block of W. Lloyd St., Milwaukee.



* Justin Howell, 20, of the 2400 block of N. Olive St., Racine.



The vans had been rented by the state Republican Party to transport voters to the polls on election day Nov. 2.



If convicted, each of the five faces up to a $10,000 fine and up to 3 1/2 years in prison. The crime met the $2,500 damage threshold as a felony because the slashed tires and towing costs totaled more than $5,300, according to the criminal complaint filed today. It says the men were caught after a security guard in the Republican Party headquarters parking lot saw the vandalism and wrote down the license-plate numbers of a fleeing car.