Jacob Blake Shooting: Charges, Lawsuits, and Police Reform

The Jacob Blake shooting took place on August 23, 2020, when Kenosha, Wisconsin, police officer Rusten Sheskey fired seven shots into Blake’s back during an attempted arrest, leaving the 29-year-old Black man paralyzed from the waist down. Neither state prosecutors nor the U.S. Department of Justice brought charges against Sheskey, who returned to duty without discipline. The shooting set off days of unrest in Kenosha, drew Kyle Rittenhouse to the city on a night that ended with two people dead, and became a defining moment in the 2020 presidential race.

What Happened on August 23, 2020

Kenosha officers were called to a residence after a woman reported that her boyfriend, who “was not supposed to be” there, was at the home. The responding officers — Sheskey, Brittany Meronek, and Vincent Arenas — knew Blake had an outstanding felony arrest warrant tied to a May 2020 domestic incident.¹

Officers tried to arrest Blake. A stun gun failed to stop him. He walked to his SUV, where his three children, ages 3, 5, and 8, were inside, opened the driver’s side door, and leaned in.² Sheskey, a seven-year veteran of the department, fired seven rounds into Blake’s back at close range. He was the only officer who fired.³

At least one bullet damaged Blake’s spinal cord. Others struck his kidney, liver, and arm. He was hospitalized in serious condition and left paralyzed from the waist down.² In a January 2021 interview with ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Blake said he was confined to a wheelchair and had undergone multiple surgeries.⁴

The Knife and the Self-Defense Question

Investigators found a knife on the driver’s side floorboard of Blake’s SUV. The Wisconsin Department of Justice confirmed Blake admitted to investigators he had a knife throughout the encounter.⁵ Blake said he had dropped the knife during a struggle with Sheskey, then picked it up, and that he meant to put it in the center console. He said he did not point or swing it at anyone.¹

Sheskey told investigators he heard another officer yell “He has a knife!” and then saw it in Blake’s right hand as Blake moved toward the vehicle. Sheskey said he feared he was about to be stabbed and could not retreat because a child was inside the SUV, raising concerns the child could be harmed or taken hostage. Blake’s attorney B’Ivory LaMarr said possessing a knife is not itself a threat and that people carry knives for many lawful reasons.¹

Why No Criminal Charges Were Filed

In January 2021, Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley announced Sheskey would not be charged. Graveley concluded the shooting was self-defense, framing the legal question as whether the officer “reasonably believed that the shooting was necessary to prevent being stabbed or necessary to prevent someone else from being in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm.”¹ He cited Blake’s refusal to drop the knife and what he described as a motion suggesting Blake was about to stab Sheskey.⁶ Blake’s legal team called the threat justification a “rationalization” for an intentional act and said the decision deepened community distrust of the justice system.

The U.S. Department of Justice ran a separate federal civil rights review through its Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and the FBI. On October 8, 2021, the department closed the case and declined to bring federal charges. Prosecutors said they could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Sheskey acted “willfully” — meaning with “the deliberate and specific intent to do something the law forbids.” The DOJ described this as the highest standard of intent in federal law and said fear, negligence, or bad judgment alone would not meet it.⁷

Sheskey Returned to Duty Without Discipline

Sheskey was placed on administrative leave after the shooting and returned to duty on March 31, 2021. Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis said an internal review found Sheskey “acted within the law and was consistent with training” and that his conduct was “within policy.” No departmental discipline was imposed.⁸

Blake’s Own Criminal Case

Blake had an active warrant on the day of the shooting, tied to a May 3, 2020, domestic incident involving the mother of his children. In July 2020 he was charged with third-degree sexual assault, criminal trespass, and disorderly conduct, all with domestic abuse modifiers. He had not been convicted of any of those charges when he was shot, and viral social media posts claiming he was a convicted sex offender were debunked by fact-checkers.⁹

On November 6, 2020, Blake pleaded guilty in Kenosha County Court to two counts of disorderly conduct with domestic abuse modifiers. The sexual assault charge and a criminal trespass count were dismissed. Judge Bruce Schroeder withheld a prison sentence and placed him on two years of probation, with a condition allowing him to live in Illinois for rehabilitation treatment.¹⁰¹¹

Civil Lawsuits

Blake filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Sheskey in March 2021 alleging excessive force. In May 2022, attorneys for both sides filed a notice agreeing to dismiss the case with prejudice, meaning it cannot be refiled. U.S. District Judge J.P. Stadtmueller ordered the dismissal on May 9, 2022. Public court filings did not indicate whether a settlement was reached.¹²

Blake also submitted special damages claims totaling nearly $777,000 to the City of Kenosha, which city officials denied. In December 2025 he filed a new federal lawsuit against the City of Kenosha, former Chief Miskinis, and officers Sheskey, Meronek, and Arenas, alleging violations of his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights along with failures to train and supervise. The suit requests a jury trial and unspecified damages.¹³

Protests, Unrest, and the Rittenhouse Shootings

The shooting set off days of protests in Kenosha, a city of roughly 98,000. Peaceful marches gave way to confrontations with police, who deployed tear gas. Several buildings in the Uptown neighborhood burned to the ground, including La Estrella Supermarket and the Uptown Restaurant.¹⁴

Governor Tony Evers declared a state of emergency on August 25, 2020, signing Executive Order #86. He authorized 125 National Guard troops on August 24, doubled the deployment to 250 the next day, and authorized 500 by August 26.¹⁵¹⁶

On the night of August 25, 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse traveled from Antioch, Illinois, to Kenosha with an AR-style semiautomatic rifle. He joined a group of armed individuals who said they were protecting businesses. During a confrontation he shot three people, killing Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and wounding Gaige Grosskreutz, 28. Rittenhouse was charged with homicide, attempted homicide, and reckless endangering, and maintained he acted in self-defense. On November 19, 2021, a jury acquitted him on all counts.¹⁷

Police Reform Efforts That Stalled

Governor Evers called a special session of the Wisconsin legislature for August 31, 2020, to consider a package of nine police reform bills, including a chokehold ban and restrictions on certain use-of-force methods.¹⁸ Republican legislators declined to take up any of the proposals. The special session lasted less than a minute, and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said he would form a task force instead.¹⁹

No officer wore a body camera during the Blake encounter. Kenosha officials had unanimously approved a body camera initiative in 2017, but cost concerns delayed implementation until 2022.¹⁸

The ACLU of Wisconsin called for Sheskey’s removal and demanded the resignations of Chief Miskinis and Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth over what it described as a “failed response.”²⁰²¹ Miskinis did not resign but retired at the end of April 2021, saying he was fulfilling a five-year commitment made when he was hired in 2016. Deputy Chief Eric Larson was named interim chief.²²

1
CNN. What We Know About the Jacob Blake Shooting
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ABC News. Jacob Blake Shot by Police in Wisconsin
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ABC News. Officer Who Shot Jacob Blake Acted Within Policy
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ABC News. Jacob Blake Speaks for the First Time
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NBC Chicago. Wisconsin DOJ Issues Statement Naming Officers in Jacob Blake Shooting
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ABC News. No Charges Filed Against Officers in Jacob Blake Shooting
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U.S. Department of Justice. Federal Officials Close Review of Officer-Involved Shooting of Jacob Blake
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NPR. Rusten Sheskey, Kenosha Officer Who Shot Jacob Blake, Will Not Face Discipline
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FactCheck.org. Posts Distort Facts on Jacob Blake Charges
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Wisconsin Public Radio. State Drops Sexual Assault Charges Against Jacob Blake
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NBC News. Sexual Assault Charge Against Jacob Blake Dismissed in Plea Bargain Agreement
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CBS Austin. Jacob Blake Drops Civil Rights Lawsuit Against Wisconsin Officer Who Paralyzed Him
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WISN. Jacob Blake Files Lawsuit Against Kenosha Officers and Retired Chief
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Wisconsin Public Radio. Four Years After Kenosha Unrest, Community Rebuilding
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Governor of Wisconsin. Governor Evers Declares State of Emergency
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Wisconsin Public Radio. Governor Evers Doubles National Guard Presence in Kenosha
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WTTW News. Rittenhouse Tells Fox News He’s Not a Racist Person
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The Guardian. Wisconsin Governor Promises Police Reforms After Jacob Blake Shooting
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Wisconsin Justice Initiative. Evers Introduced Police Reform Proposals, Then Went Dark on Urging Support for Them
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ACLU. ACLU Calls for Immediate Resignation of Kenosha Police Chief and Kenosha County Sheriff
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ACLU of Wisconsin. Justice for Jacob Blake
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Fox 6 Now. Kenosha’s Police Chief Retiring After Nearly 25 Years With Department