What Jacob Blake Told Joe Biden About His Recovery From Police Shooting
When Trump visited Kenosha, Wisconsin, instead of making an effort to visit the family of Jacob Blake, who was shot seven times in the back by police, he sat down with officers.
However, yesterday (August 3), Democratic nominee Joe Biden met with the Blake family and also had a conversation with the 29-year-old father who is paralyzed in the hospital over the phone.
According to CNN, Blake told Biden, “I’m not giving up. I’m not going to give up on life even if I never walk again, I’m going to be optimistic and I’m going to be strong because my children need their father to believe.”
Biden said about the private meeting, which reportedly lasted 15 minutes, "What I came away with was the overwhelming sense of resilience and optimism that they had about the kind of response they're getting.”
Trump reportedly refused to meet or talk with the Blake family because they wanted their lawyer Benjamin Crump present or on the phone. The president thought a lawyer was “inappropriate.” Crump was part of Biden’s call with Blake’s family.
A viral video from August 23 showed Blake walking towards his vehicle as officers had their guns drawn on him. An officer shot Blake multiple times in the back at close range as soon as he entered the car. He was shot in front of three of his sons.
Blake had reportedly been trying to break up a fight between two women when the police were called to the scene.The officers involved in Blake’s shooting have been placed on administrative leave and the incident is being turned over to the Wisconsin Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigation.
According to CNN, the officer who shot Blake has been identified as Rusten Sheskey. He has been with the Kenosha police department for seven years.
At one point, Blake was handcuffed to his hospital bed and only released after protests.
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