Jacob Blake shooting: Rusten Sheskey named as police officer who opened fire

The police officer who shot an unarmed black man in Wisconsin, sparking several days of protests that left two dead, has been named as Rusten Sheskey. 

Josh Kaul, attorney general of Wisconsin, announced to reporters on Wednesday that Mr Sheskey had been a member of the Kenosha police department for seven years before he shot Jacob Blake the back. The seven shots fired left Mr Blake paralysed from the waist down.

Mr Kaul said it would take up to 30 days to present a case to prosecutors, who would decide whether to charge Mr Sheskey.

In the meantime Mr Sheskey and the other officers present at the incident have been placed on administrative leave.

According to Mr Kaul, the officers were responding to a domestic violence call and unsuccessfully deployed a stun gun against Mr Blake while trying to arrest him. It is not clear what relation he had to the police call-out.

Mr Kaul also said Mr Blake admitted to having a knife “in his possession” during the time of the shooting, which officers subsequently recovered from the footwell of his car.

However, Mr Blake’s lawyers appeared to dispute this fact, stating: “Witnesses confirm that [Mr Blake] was not in possession of a knife and didn’t threaten officers in any way.”

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