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Jacob Blake: Why is Kenosha cop Rusten Sheskey on paid leave? The seven-year veteran makes $70,000 a year

On August 26, 2020, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul spilled the name of the officer and gave a detailed account of how the confrontation with Blake unfolded

Who shot Jacob Blake? On August 23, 2020, a 29-year-old Black man suffered seven bullet shots after Wisconsin police officers opened fire into his back around 5 pm. The question has been hovering over many minds and after heavy protests in Kenosha over racial inequality, the cat is now out of the bag. Three days later, on August 26, 2020, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul spilled the name of the officer and gave a detailed account of how the Sunday evening confrontation in Kenosha unfolded.

Officer Rusten Sheskey — who has been reported as a seven-year veteran of the Kenosha Police Department — has been named as the officer who shot Blake seven times. As per a Daily Mail report, he makes just under $70,000 a year and was disciplined in March 2017 for a violation of the force's Safe Operation of Department Vehicles. At the time, he was suspended without pay for one day. The same report also detailed how he was named in a lawsuit filed against the Kenosha PD last January for a no-knock search warrant.

The Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) issued an official statement, which read: "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."

It further said: "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 7 times. 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."

Kaul posted a long update on the investigation saying Kenosha police 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. Sheskey had earlier claimed that Blake had a knife in his hand. Shedding light on that, the statement further reads: "During the investigation following the initial incident, Mr Blake admitted that he had a knife in his possession. DCI agents recovered a knife from the driver's side floorboard of Mr Blake's vehicle. A search of the vehicle located no additional weapons."

Soon, there was much fuss and furor on the internet. "Rusten Sheskey, a 7-year veteran of the Dept. — Taser was ineffective — Blake possessed a knife — There is no bodycam footage — No criminal charges as of now," one tweet read. Another said, "I encourage you to direct your concerns to Rusten Sheskey the Kenosha police officer who fired his weapon not once, not twice, not thrice, not 4 times, not 5 times, not 6 times, but 7 times in the back of an unarmed US citizen."

Slamming him, many tweets started floating on Twitter. One said, "This is officer Rusten Sheskey. He is the one who shot Jacob Blake 7 times in his back. We need to put his face all over social media." Another posted, "@WisDOJ⁩ confirms that the Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake is Rusten Sheskey & says Blake 'admitted that he had a knife in his possession'."

One angry internet user wrote: "Rusten Sheskey IDed as Bike Cop Who Shot Jacob Blake 7 Times in The Back With His Kids in Car; Sheskey Was Anti-#BlackLivesMatter and Posted Many Blue Lives Matter Memes on His Social Media; Still is on Paid Vacation (Blue Lives Matter Pics-Vids)."

Many others lambasted the authorities for placing him on administrative leave and for the lack of criminal charge. "It’s been said a million times already but I’ll say it again. I’m tired of these mf pigs being placed on administrative leave. Rusten Sheskey needs to be prosecuted," one tweet read.

Another said, "Rusten Shesky is on administrative leave. He's most likely getting paid. For sitting at home after shooting a man in the back 7 times. @KenoshaPolice @Kenosha_Sheriff fix this or continue to be a part of the problem. You're murderers." One Twitter user said, "..shooting someone SEVEN times. This is why we say 'Black Lives Matter'. This is why we say 'defund the police'. This s**t is disgusting man. F**k your administrative leave. Arrest Rusten Sheskey for attempted murder."

The Department of Justice has opened a federal investigation into the shooting. It has sent more than 200 FBI agents and US Marshals to the city, according to a spokeswoman.