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Kenosha Protesters Demand Firing of Officer Who Shot Jacob Blake

Kenosha Protesters Demand Firing of Officer Who Shot Jacob Blake

Protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Monday called for the firing of Kenosha Police Department officer Rusten Sheskey, who prosecutors said last week would not be charged in the shooting of Jacob Blake.

The group, Leaders of Kenosha, held a rally and march at the office of Mayor John Martin Antaramian, demanding that the Kenosha Police and Fire Commission remove from the force Sheskey, a White officer, who on Aug. 23 shot Blake, a Black man, seven times in the back and side.

“We need to build trust with the community, we need to build trust with the police force, and we can’t trust them if they’re going to continue to have Rusten Sheskey as part of the department,” Erica Ness, a Leaders of Kenosha spokeswoman, said in an interview.

The Blake shooting sparked unrest and protests over the use of force by police officers against minorities.

District Attorney Michael Graveley said on Jan. 5 that prosecutors would have insufficient admissible evidence to secure a guilty verdict against Sheskey. Instead, their investigation showed the shooting occurred during a suspected domestic-abuse scene and involved a man who at first resisted arrest and then tried to stab an officer, Graveley said.

“We obviously still think he should still be charged, and at this point it’s my understanding the family is looking into options about filing a complaint” with the commission, Ness said

To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Joyce in Chicago at sjoyce@bloomberglaw.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Meghashyam Mali at mmali@bloombergindustry.com

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