Kenosha Eyewitness: Police Told Jacob Blake to ‘Drop the Knife’ Before Shooting; Did Not See Knife

A key eyewitness in the police shooting of Jacob Blake on Sunday in Kenosha, Wisconsin, says that police told Blake to “drop the knife,” though he himself did not see Blake carrying a knife at the time.

The eyewitness has been identified by the Associated Press as Raysean White, and as the person who made the original cellphone video of the shooting.

This just happend in Kenosha, WI. 💔#BlackLivesMatter. pic.twitter.com/QLW7Vxtdzm

— chrizi (@nolimitchrizi) August 23, 2020

The AP reported Tuesday:

The man who said he made the cellphone video, 22-year-old Raysean White, said he saw Blake scuffling with three officers and heard them yell, “Drop the knife! Drop the knife!” before the gunfire erupted. He said he didn’t see a knife in Blake’s hands.

The governor said he has seen no information to suggest Blake had a knife or other weapon, but that the case is still being investigated by the state Justice Department.

Most news outlets have reported Blake as having been “unarmed,” but that appears to be unknown, and police may have believed he was armed.

Video also emerged Monday of Blake brawling with police officers prior to the shooting.

Kenosha has been engulfed by riots for the past two nights, alongside Black Lives Matter protests. Protests and riots occurred elsewhere throughout the nation.

Former Vice President Joe Biden condemned the shooting Monday, but said nothing about the riots.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His new book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.