Kenosha gears for unrest as cop ruling looms

Officials in Kenosha, Wis., are bracing for potential violence when a prosecutor announces whether a white cop will be charged in the shooting of Jacob Blake, a black man who was left paralyzed, according to a report.

The City Council is expected to vote Monday on an emergency declaration to prepare for “potential civil unrest” if District Attorney Michael Graveley says Officer Rusten Sheskey will not be charged in the Aug. 23 shooting, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Graveley is due to announce his decision within the next two weeks.

Sheskey allegedly shot Blake, 29, seven times in the back. The cop was responding to a call involving a domestic disturbance at the time. The Kenosha police union has said officers went to the scene because of a complaint that Blake was trying to steal the caller’s keys and vehicle.

Police said cops thought Blake was reaching for a weapon in his car when he was shot in front of his children, who were in the vehicle.

Blake was released from a Milwaukee hospital in October to begin rehabilitation.

The caught-on-video shooting sparked widespread protests and looting in the city, adding fuel to ongoing Black Lives Matter protests over the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of police in Minneapolis and Louisville, respectively.

The Kenosha unrest led to another high-profile shooting when Illinois teen Kyle Rittenhouse fatally shot two protesters and wounded a third in what his lawyers say was self-defense.