This week, Congressmember Karen Bass (D-CA) issued the following statement after Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley announced the Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back in August of 2020 will not be criminally charged.
“Just as the world watched the killing of George Floyd on video, the world watched the shooting of Jacob Blake on video. Officers are rarely charged when they kill or injure Black people because the bar for prosecuting officers is too high. A victim has to prove that the officer intended to harm or kill the person involved in the incident. The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act lowers the bar of prosecution to recklessness.
“The officer in this situation was obviously reckless. The officer did not need to shoot Mr. Blake seven times in the back in front of his kids. His reckless act will leave his children forever traumatized. The man who tried to murder Jacob Blake should be held accountable for his actions. If the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act was law, this officer would have been held accountable. I am relieved that we will soon have a President who understands that.”
