Djuan Eskridge (Milwaukee County Detention Center), William Eskridge and the home where he was allegedly gunned down by his son (WISN screenshot)
A 19-year-old in Wisconsin accused of killing his father by shooting him 31 times last October has been arrested after several months on the run. Djuan Eskridge was taken into custody on Wednesday and charged with one count of first-degree reckless homicide and one count of using a dangerous weapon in the commission of a felony in the slaying of William J. Eskridge, court documents reviewed by Law&Crime show.
According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, officers with the Milwaukee Police Department on Oct. 9, 2023, responded to a report of a shooting at a residence in the 3800 block of N. 7th Street in Milwaukee. Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they observed an adult male — later identified as William Eskridge — dead on the ground. The body was surrounded by spent shell casings and he was pronounced dead on the scene.
Authorities first spoke to Djuan Eskridge’s grandmother, who said that the victim was her adult son and that it was her grandson and the victim’s son who gunned him down, per the affidavit.
The grandmother said that Djuan Eskridge showed up at the house earlier that evening with his brother and two other individuals whom she did not know. Djuan’s brother and William Eskridge allegedly got into a physical confrontation during which Djuan Eskridge produced a firearm and shot his father multiple times. William Eskridge was not armed at any time, per the affidavit.
After the initial salvo from Djuan Eskridge, his grandmother said William Eskridge fell to the ground.
“(The grandmother) stated that after (William Eskridge) fell to the ground, the defendant walked closer to him and shot additional rounds at (William Eskridge,)” the affidavit states.
A subsequent autopsy determined that William Eskridge had suffered a total of 31 gunshot wounds to his body.
“The autopsy indicated that WJE had sustained those gunshot wounds to his head, chest, abdomen, pelvis, back, buttocks, upper extremities, and lower extremities, causing perforations to his lungs, heart, aorta, and small and large intestines,” police wrote. “Dr. Calderaro ruled WJE’s death a homicide due to complications from gunshot wounds.”
Police said they obtained video surveillance footage showing portions of the shooting. The video allegedly shows Djuan Eskridge “distinctively wearing black sneakers” pull out a gun and fire at his father then “reapproach” and continue shooting before fleeing the scene on foot.
William Eskridge’s aunt, Rosalind Jackson, spoke to Milwaukee ABC affiliate WISN in the immediate aftermath of the killing, saying that the family wanted justice for the murder.
“I don’t care what the circumstances may have been, there was no reason for that. And you didn’t just kill him, you over-killed him,” Jackson told the station. “You devastated our family. And to think that you could just do this to your father, sad.”
Jackson previously told Milwaukee CBS affiliate WDJT that she believed Djuan Eskridge was upset with his grandmother for kicking him out of the house and threatened her with violence, which is when his father stepped in.
Djuan Eskridge made his initial appearance in court on Thursday where a judge set his bond at $200,000.
