Twitter fumes after Kenosha police say cop who shot and crippled black man is back on duty, won’t be disciplined

Police officer Rusten Sheskey, who shot a black man named Jacob Blake in the back during an arrest last August, triggering a wave of protests, will not be subjected to any discipline and has returned to duty, Kenosha police said.

The incident happened in Kenosha, Wisconsin in August 2020, when Sheskey and other officers attempted to execute an arrest warrant. The policeman, who is white, fired at Blake seven times as he was getting in his car. One of the bullets severed Blake’s spinal cord. The altercation, which was filmed, set off a wave of outrage and led to several days of massive protests and rioting.

The high-profile case was dropped by Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley in January. The prosecutor announced that the viral footage didn’t reflect the entire picture of what happened and refused to charge Sheskey with a crime.

On Tuesday, Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis announced that Sheskey’s administrative leave had expired on March 31 and he was back at his job. A separate internal inquiry was conducted and the officer “was found to have been acting within policy and will not be subjected to discipline,” he said.

I know that some will not be pleased with the outcome; however, given the facts, the only lawful and appropriate decision was made.

The number of people not pleased with the news seems to be significant, since Blake’s name has trended on Twitter in the US. Commenters expressed their anger over what they see as the latest failure of the justice system and an expression of structural racism in the police.

District Attorney Graveley refused to prosecute Sheskey, saying Blake was armed with a knife at the time of his encounter with police. If the case went to trial, the defense would argue he was acting to protect himself and the state would not be able to prove Sheskey’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt, Graveley said. He added that when Blake got into the car, one of his partner’s children was inside, and the police saw the situation as potentially becoming a kidnapping attempt.

While Sheskey will not be facing criminal charges or disciplinary consequences for the incident, Blake filed a lawsuit against him in March, alleging the use of excessive force and seeking unspecified compensation for his injury. His team is led by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who previously helped the family of George Floyd reach a $27 million civil settlement with the city of Minneapolis.

Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!