Police-involved shooting in Wisconsin prompts violent protest: report
By Edmund DeMarche | Fox News
A police officer-involved shooting on Sunday of a Black man who was shot in the back set off violent protests in the lakefront city of Kenosha,Wis., that have lasted into the early hours Monday.
Many details of the shooting were not immediately clear, but the following unrest prompted the city to issue a curfew until 7 a.m. on Monday and police asked businesses to consider staying closed “due to numerous arm robberies and shots fired calls.”
Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, issued a statement late Sunday and said Jacob Blake was shot in broad daylight.
“What we know for certain is that he is not the first Black man or person to have been shot or injured or mercilessly killed at the hands of individuals in law enforcement in our state or our country,” he said. Evers promised that there will be accountability.
Kenosha is the latest city to see unrest amid widespread protests after George Floyd died in police custody in May.
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported that police were dispatched on a domestic violence call at about 5:11 p.m. prior to the shooting. The report said that officers administered aid to Blake, who was airlifted to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.
Julian Castro, the former 2020 Democrat presidential hopeful, retweeted a purported video of the shooting that appeared to show officers yelling at Blake as he tried to walk around an SUV and get into a driver’s side seat. One of the officers appears to hold Blake by his shirt and open fire.
“Police in Kenosha, Wisconsin appear to shoot a man seven times in the back at point blank range after he ignores commands,” Castro tweeted. “We’re (sp) no other non-lethal methods considered, @KenoshaPolice?”
The Journal-Sentinel reported that a large crowd appeared at the scene and small fires were set in the street. One video purported to show a police officer knocked out during a protest. One person could be heard saying, "He got bricked."
Marchers also headed to the Kenosha County Public Safety Building, which authorities had mostly blocked off. Protesters marched along lines of cars honking on their way to the station and eventually made their way to the rear parking lot. A man could be seen breaking the window of a patrol car parked along the street. Some police officers were positioned on the roof of the station as people continued toward the building.
Outside the station, protesters faced off with officers who were dressed in riot gear that included plastic facemasks and held plastic shields and batons that they occasionally used to push people back.
News reporters at the protest posted videos of a dump truck on fire and confrontations between police and protesters. The paper reported that a fire was set outside the city's courthouse, which was also graffitied.
The police department issued a statement confirming the shooting and said the sheriff’s department and Wisconsin State Patrol have taken over the scene. The state’s Department of Justice and its Division of Criminal Investigation will investigate the shooting.
"Things have been very heated, tons of damage to cop cars, an officer was actually knocked out," one person filming said, according to the paper.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
Rioters Devastate Kenosha: Businesses Destroyed, Cars Torched
Daily Wire Staff
https://i.imgur.com/cncGMN9h.jpg
Violent riots broke out in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Sunday night after police shot a black man earlier in the day while responding to a call about a domestic incident.
Journalist Drew Hernandez posted video footage on Twitter of the riots, which he said were being led by Black Lives Matter activists. The videos show businesses being looted and set on fire.
Wisconsin Democratic Governor Tony Evers released a statement shortly after the incident happened that demonized law enforcement officials while stating at the same time “we do not have all of the details yet.”
“Tonight, Jacob Blake was shot in the back multiple times, in broad daylight, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Kathy and I join his family, friends, and neighbors in hoping earnestly that he will not succumb to his injuries,” Evers said in a statement. “While we do not have all of the details yet, what we know for certain is that he is not the first Black man or person to have been shot or injured or mercilessly killed at the hands of individuals in law enforcement in our state or our country.”
“And we stand against excessive use of force and immediate escalation when engaging with Black Wisconsinites,” Evers continued. “I have said all along that although we must offer our empathy, equally important is our action. In the coming days, we will demand just that of elected officials in our state who have failed to recognize the racism in our state and our country for far too long.”
Video of the incident appeared to show that something happened while law enforcement engaged with Blake as several officers all drew their weapons at the same time and pointed them at Blake as he walked away from them and attempted to enter a vehicle, at which point he was shot.
The fact-finding website Heavy.com reported that authorities had a warrant out for Blake’s arrest:
According to Wisconsin Circuit Court Access online records, a Jacob S. Blake, same age and with an address in the same exact block where the shooting occurred, had a warrant issued for him on July 7 on pending accusations of misdemeanor criminal trespass to a dwelling with domestic abuse as a modifier; felony third-degree sexual assault with domestic abuse as a modifier; and misdemeanor disorderly conduct with domestic abuse as a modifier. A support action was dismissed, and the only other case that comes up is for not having a driver’s license.
A 2015 story in Racine Eye described how “Racine police say K9 Dozer had to help officers take a man into custody when the man refused to go quietly into custody after he pulled a gun at a local bar.” The man was described as Jacob Blake, 24, of Racine, which makes him the same age as the man shot by police on August 23. The Racine Eye story says he was charged with “one felony count of resisting arrest causing a soft tissue injury to a police officer and one misdemeanor count each of carrying a concealed weapon, carrying a firearm while intoxicated, endangering safety-use of a dangerous weapon, and disorderly conduct.” Those charges don’t show up on the circuit court website though.
“The Kenosha Police Department released a statement following the shooting that said that officers were called to the 2800 block of 40th Street, which appears to be the same street that was listed on the arrest warrant that had been issued, to respond to a domestic incident,” The Daily Wire reported. “The Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) is investigating the incident.”