KENOSHA, WI – Jacob Blake, the man shot by a Kenosha Police officer seven times in the back, admitted to having a knife, according to a press release by the Wisconsin Department of Justice.
A woman called the police Sunday, saying that her boyfriend was at the residence when he wasn’t supposed to be at a home in the 2800 block of 40th Street.
Rusten Shesky, the responding officer, attempted to arrest Blake and had to deploy a taser to stop him. Blake kept walking away from the officer, went around the front of his SUV, opened the door, and leaned forward. Grabbing Blake’s shirt, Shesky fired his gun at Blake seven times into his back.
“No other officer fired their weapon. Kenosha Police Department does not have body cameras; therefore, the officers were not wearing body cameras,” the press release reads.
Sheskey, who has been with the Kenosha Police Department for seven years, was put on administrative leave along with another officer.
Blake told police he had the knife in his possession.
“DCI agents recovered a knife from the driver’s side floorboard of Mr. Blake’s vehicle. A search of the vehicle located no additional weapons,” according to DOJ officials.
After the shooting, the officers performed medical aid and called for Flight for Life to take him to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.
The DOJ Department of Criminal Investigations is working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Wisconsin State Patrol, and Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office. The incident remains under investigation, and once complete, it will be turned over to prosecutors within 30 days. DCI is continuing to review the evidence and determine the facts of this incident and will turn over investigative reports to a prosecutor following a complete and thorough investigation.
