KENOSHA COP NAMED
Rusten Sheskey named as Kenosha officer who shot Jacob Blake seven times as officials say he ‘had knife in his car’
THE cop who shot black father Jacob Blake seven times, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down, has been named as Officer Rusten Sheskey.
The 31-year-old fired multiple shots as he grabbed onto Blake's shirt after a taser failed to help officers restrain him, according to the Department of Justice.
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The father-of-six was shot in front of his three sons, who were sitting in an SUV that Blake was trying to enter.
Investigators later recovered a knife from the driver's-side foot-well of the vehicle, near the door he had been entering, according to the .
and the other officers at the scene of the shooting have been placed on administrative leave, officials added.
He is a seven-and-a-half-year veteran of the force and according to records, earns $70,000.
In an interview last year, he said he had always wanted to be a cop, adding that his grandfather had been on the local force for 33 years.
He previously worked for the University of Wisconsin Parkside's campus police for three years.
Sheskey was named in a lawsuit filed against the Kenosha PD last January, where a man alleged officers wrongfully used a no knock search warrant to detain him.
The Wisconsin Department of Justice released their statement as:
- President Donald Trump following days of protests against Blake's shooting
- NBA playoff games were postponed after in response to Blake's assault
- Tennis ace in protest of Blake's shooting
- 's to join NBA and Tennis athletes in protest
- A police scanner revealed cops
A DOJ spokesperson said: "Kenosha Police Department officers were dispatched to a residence in the 2800 block of 40th Street after a female caller reported that her boyfriend was present and was not supposed to be on the premises.
"During the incident, officers attempted to arrest Jacob S. Blake, age 29.
"Law enforcement deployed a taser to attempt to stop Mr. Blake, however the taser was not successful in stopping Mr. Blake.
"Mr. Blake walked around his vehicle, opened the driver’s side door, and leaned forward.
"While holding onto Mr. Blake’s shirt, Officer Rusten Sheskey fired his service weapon seven times."
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The spokesperson continued: "Officer Sheskey fired the weapon into Mr. Blake’s back. No other officer fired their weapon.
"Kenosha Police Department does not have body cameras, therefore the officers were not wearing body cameras.
"The shooting officer, Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey, has been a law enforcement officer with Kenosha Police Department for seven years.
"During the investigation following the initial incident, Mr. Blake admitted that he had a knife in his possession.
"DCI agents . A search of the vehicle located no additional weapons."
On Sunday, emerged showing , 29, being gunned down by in Kenosha, .
“As always, the video currently circulating does not capture all the intricacies of a highly dynamic incident,” Pete Deates, president of the Kenosha police union, said in a statement.
Blake is now paralyzed from the waist down but is expected to survive, his attorney, Ben Crump, said in a press conference on Tuesday.
"Those bullets severed his spinal cord and shattered his vertebrae," he said.
" for Jacob Blake to ever walk again.
"He's still struggling for his life."
Mr Crump said the shooting was done with "deliberate indifference".
Blake's mother, Julia Jackson, also addressed reporters and .
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The shooting victim's dad - who is also named Jacob Blake - told the Chicago Sun-Times that his son has 'eight holes' in his body and is paralyzed from the waist down.
"What justified all those shots?" he said. "What justified doing that in front of my grandsons? What are we doing?
"I want to put my hand on my son's cheek and kiss him on his forehead, and then I'll be OK. I'll kiss him with my mask. The first thing I want to do is touch my son."
The Sun has contacted Sheskey for comment but he has not responded.
Sheskey last year spoke about his line of work, in an interview with Kenosha News.
"What I like most is that you’re dealing with people on perhaps the worst day of their lives and you can try and help them as much as you can and make that day a little bit better," he said.
"And that, for the most part, people trust us to do that for them. And it’s a huge responsibility, and I really like trying to help the people.
"We may not be able to make a situation right, or better, but we can maybe make it a little easier for them to handle during that time.
"We’re in a public service job, a customer service job, and the public is our customer.
"I think that, especially with the officers that we have here, everybody strives to make sure that the public feels served and happy with the services they receive."
Jacob Blake Sr. described the officer who pulled the trigger on his son as “the flint as well as the gasoline” for .
“Those police officers that s are responsible for everything that has happened in the city of Kenosha,” he said.
“My son is not responsible for it. My son didn’t have a weapon. He didn’t have a gun.”
The officers involved have all been place on administrative leave.
Blake's fiancée, , told that the couple's three children were all in the back of the truck at the time of the shooting.
"That man just literally grabbed him by his shirt and looked the other way and was just shooting him," Booker said.
"With the kids in the back screaming. Screaming."
"That don't make sense that you treat somebody like that, who's not armed. He ain't throw no punch or nothing."
The issue of racism and police brutality towards black people in America has been inflamed over recent months – initially prompted by the death of in on May 25.
Amid the ongoing protests in Kenosha, a petition has been set up calling for the cops involved to be charged.
Meanwhile, Kenosha County was forced to close the The Kenosha County Courthouse and Administration Building on Sunday night.
The shooting drew condemnation from Gov. Tony Evers, who also called out 125 members of the National Guard on Monday, after protesters set cars on fire, smashed windows and clashed with officers in riot gear the previous night.
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The protests continued through Monday and Tuesday nights, resulting in two protesters being shot dead.
On Wednesday, , 17, in relation to the incidents, after being at the protests.
Rittenhouse – who travelled from to act as a vigilante – was reportedly a , supporting the nation's police forces and President Donald Trump.
Kenosha rioters threatens to ‘burn your store down too' as CHURCH and businesses are torched over Jacob Blake shooting
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