Sentencing for a Milwaukee man who eluded police twice after committing a murder was delayed Friday after a woman attacked her brother's killer.
The violence erupted when the the family of the victim, Michael Prescott, were giving victim impact statements ahead of the sentencing for Prescott's killer, Dwayne Chaney.
While Prescott's sister was giving her statement, she said her brother's death shattered the foundation of the family.
"Nothing will bring back our peacemaker," she said about her brother. "Dwayne is a waste on Earth and now the taxpayers have to pay for you to be a waste."
Suddenly, she jumped from her chair and lunged towards Chaney. The table flipped, as did Chaney out of his chair. With his hands shackled together and his leg to the floor, he fell to the ground. During the incident, Prescott's sister appeared to have struck Chaney before he fell from his chair.
The chaos continued into the gallery. Both families were screaming back and forth. A highly emotional trial boiled over.
Prescott's sister was eventually put in handcuffs by bailiffs and escorted out. The families were allowed to leave the courtroom but separately.
Judge Carolina Stark said the sentencing will be scheduled for a different date with more security.
"I just apologize and I'm sorry something like this occurred," Prescott-McClinton said. "On behalf of our family, I definitely apologize for what has happened today."
Chaney was convicted pleaded the 2015 murder of Prescott in November, bringing an end to a rollercoaster of a trial.
Chaney had eluded police for 18 months after the murder, then asked for a speedy trial. The court did not comply within 90 days, so he was released on a signature bond.
Once the trial got underway, Chaney attended for four days. Then, he was on the run again. After a four-day manhunt, he was caught — but his trial went on without him.
"[Chaney] advanced on Mr. Prescott, trapped him in the car and shot him at point-blank range in the neck," said Assistant District Attorney Karl Hayes. "He died almost immediately. Mr. Prescott was unarmed. There was no struggle. He was defenseless."
During sentencing, the state asked for the maximum sentence of life without parole in the killing of Prescott. But before sentencing, the court heard from some of the victim's family.
Prescott's oldest sister Angel Madison was the first to speak at Chaney's sentencing on Friday. She called Chaney a cold-blooded murderer with no remorse. She says, during the trial when Chaney was not in custody, he taunted the family in the hall saying he would run and there was nothing they could do.
Madison says Chaney wanted to have sex and smoke weed one last time.
"It shows he wouldn't mind life," Madison said. "It's time for his family to miss him like we miss Michael."
Prescott's mother may not have been the loudest but brought a calming tone. She apologized for what had happened and wanted Chaney's family to know this was not what she was hoping for.
"It's been very painful," said Rosslind Prescott-McClinton. "We certainly do not support the outburst of any violence or anger in that degree. As a matter of fact, this day for me was not just a day of suffering for one man, my son, but for two men. Two lives are being lost today."
Prescott-McClinton and her family say Michael's sister has taken his death the hardest. She did not attend his funeral or any of the court proceedings because of how difficult it has been to process it. So while she didn't condone what she did in court, she understands it.
"That was just an act of bottled up pain and suffering she's had to endure," Prescott-McClinton said. "The huge amount of suffering we've all had to suffer through."
The case has had its swing of emotions.
"Everyone has emotions that flow," Prescott-McClinton said. "You can never understand anyone's emotions, anyone's pain. People act out differently according to how their emotions are. Again, I'm not supporting the behavior but we just never know how people are to respond or handle or contain themselves professionally all the time."
