HOW COULD IT HAPPEN AGAIN?
Just months after George Floyd, riots as white US police officer shoots unarmed black father SEVEN times in front of his children
RIOTING erupted early yesterday as another racially charged incident involving the police shocked the US just three months after the death of George Floyd.
Demonstrators took to the streets after a white officer shot an unarmed black father seven times in the back in front of his three young sons.
The victim, 29-year-old Jacob Blake, was fighting for his life in hospital last night as authorities were braced for further angry protests.
Mr Blake was reportedly trying to break up a fight between two women in the street in Kenosha, Wisconsin, when police were called at 5pm on Sunday.
In a video posted on social media, three officers could be seen shouting and pointing their weapons at Mr Blake as he walked around the front of his parked
SUV. As he opened the driver’s side door and leaned inside, one officer grabbed his T-shirt from behind and then fired into the vehicle. Seven shots could be heard before Mr Blake slumped against his steering wheel, sounding the horn.
His sons were in the back seat of the car and witnessed the horror.
Mr Blake’s partner Laquisha Booker, told local TV: ‘That man just literally grabbed him by his shirt and looked the other way and was just shooting him. With the kids in the back screaming.’
The family’s attorney Benjamin Crump tweeted: ‘They saw a cop shoot their father. They will be traumatised for ever. We cannot let officers violate their duty to protect us. Our kids deserve better!!’
The Wisconsin Department of Justice, which is investigating the shooting, did not release any details about the officers involved but said they had been put on administrative leave.
It is not known why they had their guns trained on Mr Blake, who was dressed in shorts and a vest, although online court records show he was wanted by police for sexual assault, trespassing and disorderly conduct.
As news of the shooting spread, neighbours gathered at the scene, shouting at police. Some could be heard chanting ‘No justice, no peace’ while others appeared to throw objects at officers and damage police vehicles.
Later hundreds took to the streets of the city, which is on the shores of Lake Michigan 50 miles north of Chicago and has a population of 100,000.
By the early hours, the crowds chanted ‘we won’t back down’ as vehicles were set ablaze and windows were smashed. Marchers headed to the building housing the police and county sheriff ’s departments, which was sealed off with armed officers on the roof.
Police in riot gear lined the streets to move protesters on as they defied an emergency curfew. Tear gas was used to disperse groups, according to reports.
One video circulating on social media shows an officer collapsing to the pavement, allegedly after being struck with a brick.
Wisconsin governor Tony Evers condemned the shooting, saying in a statement that ‘while we do not have all of the details yet, what we know for certain is that he is not the first black man or person to have been shot or injured or mercilessly killed at the hands of individuals in law enforcement in our state or our country’.
He added: ‘Jacob Blake was shot in the back multiple times, in broad daylight, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. My wife Kathy and I join his family, friends, and neighbours in hoping earnestly that he will not succumb to his injuries. I have said all along that although we must offer our empathy, equally important is our action.
‘In the coming days, we will demand just that of elected officials in our state who have failed to recognize the racism in our state and our country for far too long.’
It is the latest in a series of killings of black people by US police.
Breonna Taylor, 26, was gunned down in a raid on her home in Louisville, Kentucky, in March.
In May, George Floyd, 46, died when a white officer who arrested him in Minneapolis knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, sparking Black Lives Matter protests around the world. The following month, Rayshard Brooks, 27, was shot dead as he fled officers at a restaurant car park in Atlanta.
Yesterday, presidential candidate Joe Biden called for the officers to be held accountable and for the dismantling of systemic racism.
‘This morning, the nation wakes up yet again with grief and outrage that yet another black American is a victim of excessive force,’ he said. ‘These shots pierce the soul of our nation.’
‘Grabbed him by his shirt and shot him’