Kenosha Officer Cleared In Blake Shooting Returns To Police Duty

KENOSHA, WI—The police officer cleared in the August 2020 shooting of Jacob Blake Jr. returned to police duty on March 31.

Jacob Blake Jr. was shot by Kenosha Officer Rusten Sheskey in August while Blake was about to get into an SUV, according to Wisconsin DOJ officials.

The Kenosha Police Department Chief Daniel Miskinis issued a statement:

"The Kenosha Police use of force incident on August 23, 2020 was investigated by an outside agency; has been reviewed by an independent expert as well as the Kenosha County District Attorney. Officer Sheskey was not charged with any wrong doing. He acted within the law and was consistent with training. This incident was also reviewed internally. Officer Sheskey was found to have been acting within policy and will not be subjected to discipline.

As of March 31, 2021, Officer Sheskey has returned from administrative leave. Although this incident has been reviewed at multiple levels, I know that some will not be pleased with the outcome; however, given the facts, the only lawful and appropriate decision was made,"

In March, Blake Jr. filed a lawsuit in March accusing the officer of excessive force. Blake's federal complaint against Sheskey, the only defendant, is seeking unspecified damages.

Wisconsin DOJ officials said Kenosha police officers responded to a home in the 2800 block of South 40th Street in August 2020 after a woman called authorities to report that her boyfriend, later determined to be Blake, was there, and "was not supposed to be on the premises."

The DOJ said Kenosha police officers initially tried to arrest Blake. In doing so, the DOJ said Sheskey deployed a taser in an attempt to stop Blake from struggling with officers.
According to the DOJ, when Sheskey's attempt failed, another officer also deployed a taser, however that also did not stop Blake.

Back in August, the DOJ said Blake walked around his vehicle, opened the driver's side door, and leaned forward. While holding onto Blake's shirt, Sheskey fired his service weapon seven times, the DOJ said. "Officer Sheskey fired the weapon into Mr. Blake's back," the DOJ said. "No other officer fired their weapon."

According to the DOJ, Blake admitted that he had a knife at the time of the police call Sunday. Authorities recovered a knife from the driver's side floor board of Blake's vehicle, the DOJ said, while also noting that officers did not find any additional weapons.

A witness to the shooting recorded the incident on video. In that viral video, police are seen following Blake around his SUV, grabbing him by the shirt, and opening fire on him several times as he enters his car while his children were apparently seated inside.

Blake survived the shooting.

Scott Anderson, Patch Staff, contributed to this report.