Jacob Blake files excessive force lawsuit against officer who shot him in the back

A Black man who was paralyzed after he was shot in the back by a White police officer in southeastern Wisconsin filed a civil lawsuit Thursday accusing the officer of excessive force. Jacob Blake Jr. was shot by Kenosha Officer Rusten Sheskey in August, while Blake was about to get into an SUV during a domestic dispute. 

The shooting of Blake, captured on bystander video, turned the nation's spotlight on Wisconsin during a summer marked by protests over police brutality and racism. It happened three months after George Floyd died while being restrained by police officers in Minneapolis. The white officer charged with murder and manslaughter in Floyd's killing is currently on trial. Sheskey and two other Kenosha officers were trying to arrest Blake on an outstanding warrant when a pocket knife fell from his pants during a scuffle. Blake said he picked it up before heading to a vehicle to drive away with two of his children in the back seat. He said he was prepared to surrender once he put the knife in the vehicle.