Another Black Man Shot By Police In Kenosha, Wisconsin

Police officers from the Kenosha Police Department were put on administrative leave after shooting a Black man multiple times on Sunday. The incident took place just three months after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May.

Several witnesses said the Black man, identified as Jacob Blake, had tried to break up a fight between two men outside a home on 40^th Street before three police officers used a taser on him and shot him in the back. However, a viral video of the incident showed that Blake was walking around the front of a parked vehicle when the police officers suddenly pointed their weapons at him. One of the police officers grabbed Blake and opened fire at close range.

The video circulated on social media on Sunday night but it remains unknown if all the seven shots that rang out in the video were fired by the same police officer. A statement by the Kenosha Police Department revealed that none of the officers had body cameras at the time of the incident but the state Justice Department’s criminal investigations division (DCI) would look into the shooting with the assistance of the Wisconsin State Patrol and Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office. The DCI will then turn over its reports to a prosecutor following a complete and thorough investigation of the incident.

“The Wisconsin Department of Justice is vigorously and thoroughly investigating yesterday’s officer-involved shooting in Kenosha,” said Kenosha County District Attorney General Josh Kaul in a statement on Monday. “As with all investigations we conduct, we will unwaveringly pursue justice in this case,” he added.

Blake was in serious condition after being rushed to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee but his family has since confirmed that he is now stable. The officers involved in the shooting incident are now on administrative leave but the Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office has yet to decide whether to file charges.

Meanwhile, the Kenosha Police Department said it has yet to equip its officers with body cameras. Following the incident, Kenosha County Board Supervisor Zach Rodriguez said Blake’s shooting only shows how critical it is for police officers to have body cameras.

“What happened here tonight highlights that we need body cameras for not just our sheriff’s deputies, but our city police department as well,” he said.