Milwaukee police are searching for a 68-year-old man named Sherman Williams, who was last seen near South 26th Street and West National Avenue on Sunday around 3 p.m. He is described as a Black male standing 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighing about 160 pounds, with a heart and wing tattoo on his upper left arm. He was last seen wearing a dark gray t-shirt, dark blue jeans, and black shoes.
Police have classified Williams as critically missing, according to FOX6 News Milwaukee, which reported that the Milwaukee Police Department is asking anyone with information to call MPD District 2 at 414-935-7221. That district station sits at 245 West Lincoln Avenue on the city's near South Side, according to the City of Milwaukee. Williams was last seen near South 26th Street and West National Avenue. According to the City of Milwaukee's Walker Square Strategic Action Plan, the city has called for transforming West National Avenue into a complete street. A City of Milwaukee commercial market analysis identifies Milwaukee Fire Station 26 at 26th and Scott Streets as a community facility serving the Clarke Square neighborhood.
What “Critically Missing” Means Under Milwaukee Police Protocol
The critically missing designation stems from Milwaukee Police Department Standard Operating Procedure 180, which applies when factors like severe medical needs, cognitive or physical impairment, suicidal ideation, suspected foul play, or age 11 and under are present. The classification is used when those factors are present, a policy Hoodline detailed in its earlier report on a similar search for Ronald Worley. It remains unclear from available reporting whether Williams has a formal dementia diagnosis or whether he left the area on foot or with access to a vehicle or public transit along National Avenue. The Milwaukee Police Department's 2002 Annual Report recorded 4,618 reported missing persons, including 468 deemed critical. A Wisconsin Department of Health Services report summarizes dementia-related crisis-response strategies and lessons learned by counties that received a Dementia Crisis Innovation Grant.
Williams' case also echoes a prior Silver Alert from May 2024, when a 66-year-old man also named Sherman Williams, of nearby West Allis, was reported missing and later found safe by police. It is not established in current reporting whether this is the same individual; the age discrepancy and two-year gap leave that connection an open question.
How Wisconsin's Silver Alert System Works
Wisconsin's Silver Alert program was enacted in 2014 and requires that a missing person be at least 60 years old and believed to have Alzheimer's, dementia, or another permanent cognitive impairment threatening their safety, with the disappearance reported within 72 hours, per the Wisconsin Department of Justice. When a case doesn't meet those strict criteria, state law enforcement can instead issue a Missing Endangered Person Alert through the Wisconsin Crime Alert Network.
Once activated, alerts spread through the Wisconsin Crime Alert Network via text and email, along with lottery display terminals, Wireless Emergency Alerts, and broadcaster networks. An active alert stays valid for 24 hours before requiring an official extension request, according to protocol documented by the UW–Madison Police Department.
Why These Searches Spike Every Summer
The Alzheimer's & Dementia Alliance of Wisconsin estimates at least 116,000 residents statewide live with dementia, and roughly 60 percent of people with cognitive conditions will wander off at least once as their condition worsens. The Milwaukee Police Department reported in June that critically missing person cases in the city typically climb 20 to 50 percent during summer months, as warmer weather encourages more outdoor movement.
Williams' disappearance has prompted a search by Milwaukee police. Anyone with information on Sherman Williams' whereabouts is asked to contact Milwaukee Police District 2.
