MILWAUKEE — More than two months after 19-year-old Savannah Lynn was shot and killed on Milwaukee’s north side on July 4, the man charged in her death remains on the run.
18-year-old Zurishaddai “Zeke” Goodlow is charged with one count of felony 1st degree reckless homicide while using a dangerous weapon.
An arrest warrant for Goodlow was issued 13 days after Lynn’s murder.
Lynn’s mother Jessica says she wants the person charged in her daughter’s killing taken into custody. “I just want him to be caught,” she said. “I want him to serve his time.”
Lynn’s aunt and guardian, who asked to be identified as Dee Dee, says the delay has left her family grieving, frustrated, and afraid.
“The ball was dropped on so many different levels,” Dee Dee said.
Savannah’s future
Dee Dee served as Lynn’s guardian for many years, and raised her as her own child.
“She was a loving, caring person,” Dee Dee said. “She loved serving the community. She was a childcare provider. She loved working with kids.”
Lynn also styled hair from her own suite and dreamed of becoming an entrepreneur and owning a building. “She had reached a lot of milestones to only be 19,” Dee Dee said.
According to Dee Dee, Lynn had just finished work on July 4 and planned to go to the mall for an outfit. Her plans changed after a cousin contacted her for help because she feared she was about to be attacked.
Lynn’s mother Jessica says her daughter received approximately 11 telephone calls from the cousin before going to the location.
Dee Dee says Lynn went to pick up her cousin—not to participate in a fight. “She tried to de-escalate the situation and ended up losing her life,” Dee Dee said.
Lynn’s mother Jessica also insists her daughter was not involved in the physical confrontation. “My daughter never fought with anybody,” she said. “She was on the phone walking back and forth.”
Cellphone video documented the shooting
The shooting occurred around 4:22 p.m. near N. 36th Street and W. Thurston Avenue.
According to the criminal complaint, Lynn was telling people to leave when Goodlow allegedly pulled out a firearm and began shooting toward her group from approximately 10 feet away.
Police recovered four fired 9mm cartridge casings. Investigators determined all four were consistent with having been fired from the same gun.
Lynn was struck in the head and right leg. Officers attempted lifesaving measures, but she died from her injuries.
The complaint says a witness recorded the confrontation. Prosecutors allege the video shows Goodlow walking away with another woman before that woman turns and points toward Lynn’s group three times. Goodlow then allegedly walks away from the woman, pulls out a firearm, and begins shooting.
A witness later identified Goodlow through a police photo array, according to the complaint.
Lynn’s mother Jessica says her daughter did not know Goodlow before that day. “She didn’t even know the young man,” she said. “My cousins knew the boy. My daughter didn’t know him.”
Surviving teenage witness
Dee Dee says her 16-year-old daughter arrived with Lynn, witnessed the shooting, and was grazed by a bullet. She also says a 2-year-old child was inside the vehicle.
Despite allegedly being both a surviving victim and an eyewitness, Dee Dee says detectives did not initially contact her daughter for an interview. “It took me to get in contact with the detectives for them to question my daughter,” Dee Dee said.
After waiting approximately one week, Dee Dee says she personally brought her daughter to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office to speak with investigators.
The criminal complaint does not identify Dee Dee’s daughter as an additional shooting victim or describe her alleged injury.
Dee Dee wants authorities to explain why no additional charge was filed in connection with the alleged gunfire directed toward her daughter and others.
She also questions why the woman shown pointing toward Lynn’s group has not been charged. Dee Dee alleges the woman was taken into custody but later released.
While the complaint confirms that a woman pointed toward Lynn’s group three times immediately before the shooting, it does not accuse her of ordering the shooting, or identify any charge against her.
Police and prosecutors respond
620 WTMJ asked Milwaukee Police whether Goodlow is in custody, whether other agencies are assisting with the search, and why Dee Dee’s teenage daughter was allegedly not interviewed until the family brought her to authorities.
“The information provided in the criminal complaint is the only information available at this time,” MPD responded. “Milwaukee Police continue to seek the known suspect, Goodlow.”
WTMJ also reached out to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office for whether charges involving other people allegedly fired upon were considered, and whether the woman shown pointing was referred for possible prosecution.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Jeffrey Altenburg confirmed that the case remains in warrant status. “It is my understanding that as of today, this matter remains in warrant status,” Altenburg wrote in a statement to WTMJ. He declined to answer the additional questions because the case remains pending.
“If additional charges are filed, I will let you know,” he wrote.
“Peace and sleep“
Lynn’s mother Jessica says repeatedly telling the story of her daughter’s death remains painful. “Everything is just crazy,” she said. “I can’t even explain all this.”
She says she wants Goodlow brought before the court to answer the allegations against him. “He was bold enough to kill my child,” she said. “He should be bold enough to take the sentence he’s going to get.”
Dee Dee says Goodlow remaining unaccounted for leaves her daughter afraid for her safety as a surviving eyewitness.
When asked what an arrest would mean to the family, Dee Dee answered: “Peace and sleep.”
Goodlow faces up to 60 years in prison if convicted. The dangerous-weapon modifier could increase the maximum sentence by five years.
Anyone with information about his location should not approach him. Contact Milwaukee Police at 414-935-7360 or submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers at 414-224-TIPS.
