A double homicide on the afternoon of December 23, 2024, left two men dead near 38th and Nash streets in Milwaukee. Police found a vehicle that had struck a pole; inside were two fatally shot men. One victim was identified as 36-year-old Rodney Walls, Black / African American. The other victim was 24-year-old Deontay Long.

According to a later criminal complaint, Walls was seated in the front passenger seat and Long was driving when a third person in the backseat opened fire. Long tried to flee the vehicle after being shot but collapsed from his injuries. Officers located a vehicle connected to the killings the same day and pursued it in a high-speed chase that ended with a crash on I-94 near North 16th Street. The driver, identified as 27-year-old Valentin Santana of Milwaukee, was arrested after a short foot pursuit; another 27-year-old man who had been driving was also taken into custody.

Santana was charged with two counts of first-degree reckless homicide with the use of a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm by a felon, first-degree recklessly endangering safety, and fleeing an officer. The motive and any relationship between Santana and the victims have not been released. Does anyone have information about Rodney Walls or what led to this shooting?