President Donald Trump says he did not like what he witnessed in the video that captured the moment Jacob Blake —a Black man — was shot seven times in the back by a white police officer.
After a rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, on Friday night, Trump was asked if the officer was justified in shooting Blake, “I’m looking into it very strongly. I’ll be getting reports, and I’ll certainly let you know.”
“It was not a good sight. I didn’t like the sight of it, certainly, and I think most people would agree with that,” he added.
Watch the video below:
.@realDonaldTrump says he's looking into the shooting of Jacob Blake: "It was not a good sight. I didn't like the sight of it, certainly, and I think most people would agree with that." More tonight on @WMUR9 at 11pm, full 1-on-1 interview airs Sunday 10am on CloseUp. #WMUR pic.twitter.com/ECwfwKg0kW
— WMUR TV (@WMUR9) August 29, 2020
On Sunday, Blake was shot seven times from behind in Kenosha, Wisconsin, as he leaned into his vehicle.
The Wisconsin Department of Justice said that officers had responded to a domestic incident call, which ultimately ended in the shooting of Blake that has left him paralyzed from the waist down.
The department said officers used a taser on Blake, but it was ineffective.
Additionally, officials claimed Blake told officers he had a knife.
A video that surfaced online after the incident shows Blake walking to the driver’s side door of his vehicle, his three kids were in the car, as he opens the door Officer Rusten Shuskey is seen grabbing Blake’s shirt. As Blake opens the door and leans into the vehicle, Shuskey fired his service weapon seven times.
The Justice Department also said officers recovered a knife from the driver’s side floorboard.
Kenosha Professional Police Association later said in a statement officers saw Blake’s knife and asked him to drop it. Additonally, the statement did not detail a threat to officers when Blake was shot.
Blake’s lawyer, Benjamin Crump, claims his client was trying to break up a fight when the police arrived and denied that he was a threat to the officers.
Sheskey has not been charged, and several agencies are investigating the shooting.
