A Wisconsin man was charged earlier this week after he shot and killed his wife outside a beauty salon in downtown Milwaukee because he was “tired of being yelled at,” Law & Crime reports.
Timothy Lewis, 59, was charged with first-degree reckless homicide and use of a dangerous weapon in the death of wife, Jacqueline Beason. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
The shooting occurred near Cass and Kilbourn around 12:45 pm Saturday (June 1st).
Authorities found Beason slumped towards the passenger side of her gray Toyota Corolla with a single gunshot wound, a criminal complaint cited by Milwaukee FOX affiliate WITI says.
She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Beason was on the phone with her daughter, who overheard her mother and Lewis arguing. The daughter reportedly heard Beason tell Lewis that he had been “disrespectful to her and her daughters” and then to “Put that gun away” and “It’s a fake.”
The last thing the daughter allegedly heard was Lewis telling Beason, “There you go.” Then the phone went silent. “She did not hear any gunshots, and it sounded as though the phone was shut off,” the criminal complaint cited.
Police interviewed a witness who reportedly saw the incident from across the street. The witness told police she saw a Black male leaning into the Toyota Corolla while pointing a gun at a woman in the driver’s seat.
The witness allegedly heard the woman in the car (Beason) tell the man (Thomas Lewis) that she “had recordings” of him mistreating her and to “get away” from the vehicle. Lewis allegedly said, “OK,” then shot her.
Milwaukee Police stopped a white Mercedez Benz later that day; Lewis was the driver. He got out, claimed he had a gun, and told the arresting officers he knew he was “going to jail for a long time” and he “knew police were looking” for him.
Lewis said that his wife and her daughter were yelling at him, and he got tired and took his gun out, the criminal complaint reports. He said he “Just lost it right there.” Lewis said that he shot her one time, and he thinks he shot her in the jaw.
He said that he is the one who did it; no one else did it.”
Beason’s daughter is crushed.
“I’m so hurt, lost, angry, confused…. I just don’t understand,” she wrote on Facebook. “My life will NEVER ever be the same. I went from celebrating my Mom’s 60th birthday to planning her funeral all within 24 hours. This has to be a nightmare.”
Beason’s death marks the 15th domestic violence-related homicide in Milwaukee County this year, highlighting the urgent need for awareness and resources to combat this ongoing crisis.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. The National Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or https://www.thehotline.org.
