A Marquette University student says she woke up to pounding on her bedroom door before dawn earlier this month, only to hear her roommate shout that someone had broken into their apartment. The two climbed out a window to escape while the intruder remained inside, and Marquette University police arrested him within minutes.
The break-in happened after 5 a.m. on August 2 near 15th Street and Kilbourn Avenue, according to WISN 12 News. The student, whose identity WISN protected, recalled hearing a shattering sound before her roommate yelled, “There's someone in the house.” Both students called 911 and escaped through a window while the man remained inside, and Marquette police arrived by the time they climbed out.
Officers took the suspect, identified as Deandre Morgan, into custody immediately. According to the criminal complaint cited by the station, Morgan was found sitting on a couch in an upstairs room with two empty liquor bottles next to him. That detail turned out to matter a great deal for how prosecutors ultimately charged him.
Why Trespass, Not Burglary
Prosecutors charged Morgan with criminal trespass and criminal property damage — both misdemeanors — rather than felony burglary. WISN 12 News asked the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office why the case did not rise to a felony but did not receive a response.
The legal distinction comes down to intent. Under Wisconsin Statute § 943.10, felony burglary requires prosecutors to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that an intruder entered a dwelling specifically to steal or commit another felony, a charge that carries up to 12.5 years in prison as a Class F felony, according to the Bucher Law Group. Finding a suspect sitting on a couch with empty liquor bottles, without immediate evidence he intended to steal anything, points prosecutors toward the lesser trespass charge instead. Criminal trespass to a dwelling under Wisconsin Statute § 943.14 is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying a maximum of nine months in jail and a $10,000 fine, per the Van Severen Law Office.
Court records reviewed by the station show Morgan has a criminal history, including time served for armed robbery and use of force in 2023. Despite that record, online court records showed he was released from jail on a signature bond just days after his arrest. Under Wisconsin judicial procedure, a signature bond allows someone to be released without posting cash bail, relying instead on a written promise to appear at future court dates.
No Campus Alert, Despite Nearby Assault
Marquette University police did not issue a campus-wide safety alert after the break-in, and WISN 12 News asked the university why students didn't receive one. A Marquette University spokesperson told the station that safety is the highest priority for the university.
MUPD's own guidelines specify that text safety alerts go out only when there is an active, ongoing threat to campus or a significant, unresolved police presence — and officers had already taken Morgan into custody, ending any active threat before an alert would typically be considered. That threshold tracks with federal Jeanne Clery Act rules, which require timely warnings for serious or continuing threats but reserve emergency mass notifications for immediate, unfolding danger, according to the Clery Center. Marquette expanded its alert system in October 2022 to include parents and guardians, a reform that grew out of the President's Task Force on Community Safety the university created in 2020.
Still, the lack of a campus-wide notice is likely to sting for students near 14th and 15th streets, who remain on edge after a man sexually assaulted a Marquette student at gunpoint in an alley near 14th Street and Kilbourn Avenue in February — just one block from where this break-in happened. Hoodline previously reported on that alley assault, which prompted student leaders to organize new safety initiatives, including expanded walking partners alongside MUPD's EagleExpress rideshare service.
Timing, Ahead of Fall Move-In
The break-in occurred roughly three weeks before Marquette's official move-in day for residence halls, set for Wednesday, August 26, meaning thousands of undergraduates were still weeks away from returning to campus when it happened. MUPD, established as a commissioned police force in 2015, operates 48 sworn officers, more than 1,200 security cameras and 450 campus blue light phones covering more than 15,000 students, faculty and staff — resources that allowed officers to reach the apartment quickly even during the summer lull.
Citywide, Milwaukee Police Department midyear 2026 statistics showed property crime down 7% overall compared to 2025, even as officials noted in April that localized burglaries had ticked up in some neighborhoods, according to CBS 58.
The student who escaped says she wants to raise awareness of what happened and is urging other college students to maintain proper protection, warning that a break-in like hers can happen to anyone.
