Man claims self-defense in fatal shooting outside Milwaukee police station

Bruce Vielmetti
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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Randy Drescher was standing his ground when he fired three shots and killed a stranger who had thrown a traffic cone at him in front of a Milwaukee police station, Drescher's attorney told a jury Monday.

Drescher, 66, is charged with first-degree reckless homicide in the August death of Reed Carlsen, 42, of West Allis during a random encounter in front of the District 6 station of the Milwaukee Police Department, where Drescher immediately went inside, reported the shooting and was arrested.

Randall B. Drescher was charged with first-degree reckless homicide in the death of Reed E. Carlsen.

"It is not a complicated case," Assistant District Attorney Paul Tiffin said in his opening statement. "The defendant shot an unarmed man three times and killed him."

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In his opening remarks, defense lawyer Austin Mort characterized Carlsen as a younger, stronger, angry man "looking for a fight," and his client as a weaker target who couldn't run, and had no duty to retreat before using deadly force in self-defense when he feared for his life.

Mort told the jury he expected they would find Drescher's actions "were not only a reasonable choice but his only choice."

Drescher, who had a license to carry his .40-caliber handgun, had accompanied his friend Cooper Castillo to meet someone selling a Benelli shotgun for $1,200 outside District 6, 3006 S. 27th St., so Castillo could check to see if it was stolen before completing the purchase.

Castillo, whose videotaped testimony was played because he is out of the country, said he was concerned he might be the target of a robbery, so he asked Drescher, whom he knew carried a gun, to come along. He said the two men were just waiting inside Castillo's van for the seller when Carlsen walked up to the open passenger window and asked, "What the (expletive) are you looking at?"

Castillo said he told Carlsen they were just waiting for someone, that they weren't police officers and didn't want any trouble. He said Drescher finally told Carlsen, "Why don't you just get the (expletive) out of here?" and Carlsen became angrier, and said he didn't have to leave.

When he finally started to walk away, Castillo said, he began to call 911 when suddenly an orange rubber traffic cone came flying into the van and knocked the phone from his hand.  He said they waited until Carlsen finally seemed to be walking away. Then Drescher got out to return the cone, Castillo said, because they didn't want anyone to think they were trying to steal it.

That's when Carlsen turned and walked back toward Drescher. In his opening statement, Mort told jurors Drescher didn't think he had time to get back to the van, raise the window and lock the door, or get inside the police station, so he showed his gun.

Castillo said Carlsen smiled, and said, "Oh, you've got a gun," and kept advancing until Drescher fired from about three feet away. Police immediately gave Carlsen CPR until paramedics arrived, but he was pronounced dead when he arrived at Froedtert Hospital.

Carlsen had been shot in the chest, the groin and the buttocks.

The trial continues Tuesday.

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