Jacob Blake has released his first public statement after being shot in the back by a police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down.
Blake, 29, spoke out from his hospital bed in a video message released on Saturday by his attorney Ben Crump.
‘I just want to say, man – a lot of young cats out there and even the older ones, older than me, it’s a lot more life to live out here man,’ Blake said in the video.
‘Your life, and not only just your life, your legs, something you need to move around and forward in life, can be taken from you like this, man,’ he said, snapping his fingers.
‘Your life, and not only just your life, your legs, something you need to move around and forward in life, can be taken from you like this, man,’ Blake said, snapping his fingers
‘And I promise you the type of s**t you go through, staples, I got staples in my back, staples in my damn stomach, you do not want to deal with this s**t, man. Twenty-four hours, every twenty-four hours it’s pain, nothing but pain,’ Blake continued.
He added: ‘It hurts to breathe, it hurts to sleep, it hurts to move from side-to-side, it hurts to eat. Please, I’m telling you, change your lives. Stick together, make some money, make everything easier for our people out there, man, because there’s so much time that’s been wasted.’
It is his first statement to the public since he was shot on August 23 by police responding to a domestic complaint 911 call, as he opened the door to a vehicle and leaned inside.
However, Blake also appeared in court via a Zoom call on Friday where he pleaded not guilty to charges of criminal trespass, sexual assault, and disorderly conduct.
The shooting of Blake has kicked off weeks of tense, and sometimes violent, protests in Kenosha, and renewed protests over racial injustice and police conduct nationwide.
People attend a ‘Trump-Pence Out Now’ Nationwide Day of Action demonstration on September 5, 2020 in New York City
Protestors march past the gates of Churchill Downs racetrack before the running of the 146th running of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday
Police responded to a 911 from a former girlfriend of Blake, who said that he was not permitted on her premises, and had taken her car keys and refused to give them back.
Responding officers were notified that Blake had an active arrest warrant, based on charges of third-degree sexual assault filed by the former girlfriend.
Police had deployed tasers on Blake, which seemingly had no effect, and were seen on bystader video physically grappling with him.
Then, Kenosha police officer officer Rusten Sheskey fired seven times, striking Blake four times, as Blake opened the door to an SUV and reached inside.
Prosecutors say that a knife was recovered on the driver-side front floorboard of the car, where Blake was leaning, sparking debate over whether he was holding or reaching for the knife.
Blake, in white shirt, is seen moments before he was shot on August 23
US Attorney General Bill Barr said this week that Blake was was committing a felony and armed at the time he was shot.
Lawyers for the Blake family Ben Crump, Patrick Salvi, and B’Ivory Lamarr released a statement disputing Barr’s account.
‘Attorney General Barr is misinformed. The police officers were the aggressors from start to finish, based on video and witness accounts,’ they said.
‘There was never any point in time when there was justification for deadly force. In fact, there were innocent bystanders in the line of fire when he shot seven times into Jacob’s back,’ they continued.
‘At all material times, Jacob’s back was to the officers and he never posed an imminent threat. This was never a life or death situation for the officers.’