A Milwaukee judge has now put the second of two women tied to a 2024 apartment shooting on probation, closing a case that started when a 4-year-old got hold of a loaded gun and shot an 8-year-old inside a north-side apartment. The incident happened on Nov. 8, 2024, and co-defendant Nakia Piggee accepted a plea in April 2025 that also landed her two years of probation.
Court records show Vanta'jah Westmoreland pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor child neglect counts, while a related felony charge was dismissed under a plea agreement. Judge Anderson Gansner sentenced her to two years of supervised probation with conditions that include absolute sobriety and a ban on possessing firearms, according to FOX6 Milwaukee.
What happened
Prosecutors say Piggee and Westmoreland left four children in a one-bedroom apartment on 75th Street just northeast of 76th and Brown Deer: two 8-year-olds, a 4-year-old and a severely disabled 2-year-old. The 4-year-old allegedly found a handgun that had been kept under a mattress and fired a shot that struck one of the 8-year-olds in the back. The injured child then called for help while the adults were still gone, as reported by WISN.
Evidence at the scene
Responding officers described the apartment as “filthy.” Inside, they reported finding a bloody T-shirt with an apparent bullet hole, a bloody blanket and a single 9mm shell casing wedged between a crib and a mattress. Investigators say a resident was handed a gun wrapped in sweatpants, and officers later found that same weapon in a 16-year-old's backpack. Police reported finding no gun locks or safes anywhere in the unit, according to FOX6 Milwaukee.
Legal context
The two women were initially charged with multiple neglect counts that could have carried felony penalties, and prosecutors pushed for no-contact orders and other protections for the children. In April 2025, Piggee entered a plea that included probation, parenting classes and community service. Explaining the court's focus on safe gun storage, Judge Anderson Gansner told CBS58, “It wasn't on some high shelf, it wasn't locked in a gun safe.”
Why it matters
The case has become another example of how unsecured firearms can turn a household into a crime scene in seconds, raising recurring questions about how the justice system handles negligence when the person pulling the trigger is a child. Local outlets have been tracking recent Milwaukee sentences that stop short of prison in serious cases; for one recent parallel, see this report on a probation shock for robbery accomplice.
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