David Clarey
Daeshaun Graves was already charged with armed robbery and out on bail when he arrived at a hospital with gunshot wounds on Jan. 31.
Police found security footage showing the 20-year-old pointing a gun at someone before he was shot — violating the terms of his pretrial supervision in the armed robbery case.
The next day, prosecutors asked the judge to raise his bail from $10,000 to $100,000. The judge, Danielle Shelton, refused.
Graves remained free.
In the months following, prosecutors say, Graves shot and killed two people — including his uncle Darrell Antwon Harbour in July — and is facing first-degree reckless homicide charges in both.
A month after his uncle was shot, on Aug. 4, Graves allegedly shot and killed Quincy Smith of Milwaukee after an altercation when Smith found Graves with his on-and-off girlfriend. He would burn the vehicle with Smith's body inside of it, prosecutors say.
Shelton declined to discuss the decision to not raise his bail in the armed robbery case, citing the open cases against Graves.
However, the judge, in an emailed response to the Journal Sentinel, outlined the "fundamental tenets" of the criminal justice system and the bail request process in the courtroom.
"It is a fundamental tenet of our criminal justice system that a defendant is innocent until proven guilty. The State and the State alone bears the burden of proving a defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt," she said in the email. "If there are allegations that a defendant has violated the conditions of bail, the State may ask for an increase in bail."
Graves remains in jail following the two reckless homicide charges on $1 million bail, according to the Milwaukee County Sheriff's jail roster.
Prosecutors ask to increase Graves's bail denied, despite alleged breach of conditions
Graves’ felony bail jumping charge stems from a June 2023 case where Graves is alleged to have assisted in an armed robbery, according to a criminal complaint.
In that case, Graves is alleged to have bumped a vehicle he was driving into another vehicle, and the two pulled over into a nearby parking lot. A woman in the car Graves was driving would later pull a handgun out and the driver fled the scene, only to look back to see their vehicle and Graves’s vehicle driving away.
Police found the vehicle later that day and Graves would later admit to police of his involvement, according to the criminal complaint.
In that case, Graves was released on $10,000 cash bail on August 7, 2023, with the condition that he not possess a firearm, according to court records. However, on Feb. 1, prosecutors asked to increase his bail to $100,000, citing the armed robbery, possession of a weapon, a re-offense and dishonesty with police.
That ask came after Graves went to the hospital on Jan. 31 with gunshot wounds. The prosecutor's request said Graves “provided false information to officers, but was released from the hospital before police could obtain the video of the incident.”
Officers later reviewed video, the document said, which showed Graves drawing a handgun and pointing it at someone else. Per the terms of his bond, Graves was not to possess any firearms.
On Feb. 8, Shelton denied the prosecutor's request to increase his bail.
Graves was also out on bail in another case, a misdemeanor for obstructing or resisting an officer. He is scheduled for a status conference in that case on Dec. 6.
Kent Lovern, the chief deputy district attorney for Milwaukee County, declined to discuss Shelton's decision, citing it as an open case.
"I would say, generally speaking, when we ask for an increase in bail, we believe we have a good reason for doing so," Lovern told the Journal Sentinel.
Graves next hearing in the armed robbery case is on Dec. 6 for a status conference.
Latest charge alleges Graves shot his uncle one month before other homicide
The newest charge against Graves was filed on Nov. 4 and prosecutors allege the 20-year-old shot and killed his uncle on July 15.
The criminal complaint says Graves' girlfriend told police he admitted to her he shot and killed his uncle. That shooting occurred after the two got in an argument, following the uncle's dog biting Graves and another family member.
A family member of Graves and the uncle declined to comment.
Graves told his girlfriend he "had done 'something bad,'" according to the complaint. She told police Graves was approached by his uncle, who spoke disrespectfully to him, and Graves warned him to back away or he would shoot him.
The uncle continued to approach him, and Graves fired, but did not intend to kill him, the complaint said. Graves aimed the gun at his uncle's legs, but the weapon was modified to be fully automatic and the recoil of the weapon led to him shooting his uncle in the abdomen.
The complaint says police reviewed security footage of the altercation, which correlated with the girlfriend's telling of the incident,
That occurred about a month before Graves is alleged to have shot and killed Quincy Smith.
The investigation into that killing seemed to assist in leading police to Graves in the death of his uncle. The criminal complaint says a police detective searched Graves car following the Smith killing and found a handgun which matched bullet casings found at the crime scene of his uncle's death.
The Journal Sentinel was unable to reach the family of Smith for an interview.
Graves is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Nov. 12 for the alleged July 15 reckless homicide and a Nov. 22 scheduling conference in the alleged August reckless homicide.
David Clarey can be reached at dclarey@gannett.com.
Judge Danielle Shelton blows smoke when questioned about her denial of an increase in bail. Judges are never held responsible for the crimes, damage, injury, and death that they inflict upon their communities. You will notice, however, that judges NEVER release a suspect into the judge's own neighborhood. Most judges are swine lawyers.
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