Demetrius A. Eason, 44, was fatally shot in the early morning hours of June 11, 2017, during a double shooting in the 3200 block of North Buffum Street, near Buffum and Auer on Milwaukee’s north side. The shooting occurred about 12:40 a.m.; a second adult man was also struck and taken to a hospital. Police said investigators had not yet established what led to the shooting and were seeking a suspect and motive.

Eason, known to family and friends as Meat, was described by his longtime partner, Belinda Joyner, as having been near people who were gambling when a dispute developed; Joyner said Eason raised his hands and told the armed person he was not involved and had no money, but was shot anyway. Family members held a vigil near the scene shortly after the killing and again almost a year later, with his niece Danielle Jackson saying uncertainty about who killed him and why had made the loss especially painful. Public cold-case records continue to list the death as a murder, and no arrest, charge, trial, or conviction is documented in the contemporaneous reporting.

If anyone knew Demetrius, saw activity on North Buffum Street that night, or has information about who fired the shots, please come forward.