UPDATE: DOJ Names Two Other Officers Involved In Jacob Blake Shooting
The Wisconsin Department of Justice has identified the two additional cops involved in the officer-involved shooting of Jacob Blake.
RELATED: Wisconsin Attorney General Identifies Cop Who Fired Seven Shots Into Jacob Blake’s Back
According to a Friday statement obtained by NBC affiliate WMTV, Vincent Arenas and Brittany Meronek were the other officers who were on the scene during Sunday’s shooting. The DOJ is now stating that officers “attempted to arrest” Blake and that after an initial attempt, Officer Rusten Sheskey used a taser “to stop” Blake. However, when that failed, Vincent Arenas also fired a taser, which also failed. After being pulled by the shirt, Blake then walked around his vehicle, opened the driver’s side door, and leaned forward. Officer Sheskey then unnecessarily fired 7 times into Blake’s back. The news site notes that no other officer fired their weapon. As of right now, it is still not exactly clear what Blake was being arrested for. However, it was noted that the Kenosha Police Department does not have body cameras, the DOJ said.
Sheskey has been with the Kenosha Police Department for seven years while Arenas has been with the force since February 2019, previously working for the U.S. Capitol Police. Meronek joined the department in January of this year, officials said. All three officers have been placed on administrative leave during the investigation, authorities have previously said.
As we previously, witnesses say Blake was breaking up a fight before cops arrived at the scene. The DOJ’s statement also confirmed that Kenosha police responded to the scene “after a female caller reported that her boyfriend was present and was not supposed to be on the premises.”
As a result of the incident, Blake was told that he is paralyzed from the waist down. Attorney Ben Crump said during a Tuesday press conference, “Because those bullets severed his spinal cord and shattered some of his vertebrae, it is going to take a miracle… for Jacob Blake Jr. to ever walk again.”
According to NBC Chicago, the DOJ’s statement also says Blake “admitted that he had a knife in his possession” during the investigation into the shooting, noting that agents found a knife on the driver’s side floorboard of his vehicle. No other weapons were found in a search of the vehicle, officials said. Ben Crump, who describes him as a family man whose three sons were in the car at the time of the shooting, said that still does not justify police shooting Blake several times in his back.
It was also revealed by Blake’s father that he is handcuffed to his hospital bed even though he’s now paralyzed, the Chicago-Times reports.
The Wisconsin DOJ said its Division of Criminal Investigation is leading the investigation into the shooting, assisted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Wisconsin State Patrol, and Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office, with all law enforcement agencies cooperating.
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RELATED: Jacob Blake Handcuffed To Hospital Bed Despite Being Paralyzed