Jacob Blake's Excessive Force Lawsuit Against Kenosha Officer Dropped

KENOSHA, WI — Jacob Blake's civil lawsuit that argued a Kenosha police officer used excessive force in shooting him several times has been dismissed, online court records show.

The August 2020 shooting of Blake led to several days of unrest in Kenosha, during which Kyle Rittenhouse fatally shot two protesters. The civil suit, filed in March 2021, argued that Kenosha Officer Rusten Sheskey used excessive force when he shot Blake during a disturbance.

Sheskey shot Blake seven times in the back, officials with the Wisconsin Department of Justice said in 2021. Sheskey shot Blake after he had resisted arrest and seemed to turn toward Sheskey with a knife, according to police.

Officers had arrived at a home in the 2800 block of South 40th Street the day of the shooting after a woman called to report her boyfriend, Blake, was there when he wasn't supposed to be, the Wisconsin DOJ said.

The police shooting left Blake paralyzed below the waist. Sheskey has since been cleared to return to work as an officer.

It wasn't immediately clear why the suit was dismissed or if a settlement had been reached, but the case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it cannot be re-filed. Rittenhouse has since been acquitted in court in the fatal shooting of the two protesters after attorneys argued his actions were in self-defense.

SEE ALSO:

Kenosha Officer Cleared In Blake Shooting Returns To Police Duty

Feds Won't Pursue Charges Against Kenosha Cop In Blake Shooting

Rittenhouse Acquitted In Fatal Kenosha Protest Shooting

Reporting from the Associated Press was used in this article.