Months after the ill-fated death
of George Floyd, another protest broke out in Kenosha, Wisconsin after a black
man was shot at multiple times by the police officers, the New York Times
reported.
The video of the encounter was circulated widely on social media
platforms. The man, who was shot was immediately taken to the hospital and reported
to be in a serious health condition at a Milwaukee hospital on Sunday night. He was identified as Jacob Blake.
According to the report,
the man was shot multiple times as he tried to open the driver-side door of a
parked vehicle on a residential street.
Tony Evers, Governor of
Wisconsin, released a statement regarding the incident.
“Tonight, Jacob Blake was
shot in the back multiple times, in broad daylight, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Kathy and I join his family, friends and neighbours in hoping earnestly that he
will not succumb to his injuries. While we do not have all 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 of our country,” the statement read.
“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 recognise the racism in our state and our country for far too
long,” the statement continued.
The police officers were
responding to a call of a domestic violence incident, the New York Times
reported, quoting a spokesperson for the Kenosha Police Department.
The 20-minute long video,
which is circulating in social media, ends shortly after the shooting.
Lt. Joseph Nosalik, spokesperson
for the Police Department, said that the shooting would be investigated by the
Division of Criminal Investigation at the Wisconsin Department of Justice.