KENOSHA, Wis.—Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers declared a state of emergency Tuesday, as state officials prepared for another night of protests sparked by a police shooting of a Black man that left government buildings and businesses across the city burned and looted.
Mr. Evers said he authorized 250 Wisconsin National Guard troops to protect critical infrastructure and assist Kenosha authorities.
Government buildings were left damaged and businesses were burned out in the city’s downtown Tuesday. A dark sky and rain added to the gloomy scene, an area pockmarked with small stores that residents say they typically rely on for basic necessities.
“I’m devastated,” said Katie Gray, 36 years old, a resident. “I’m devastated for multiple reasons. I’m devastated because this man got shot in front of his three kids.”
In the Uptown area, a racially diverse neighborhood about a mile from downtown, onlookers gathered on a sidewalk behind yellow police tape to watch firefighters spray water on a strip of still-smoldering buildings: a beauty shop, a restaurant and a cellphone store. Workers across the street placed plywood over a storefront whose windows were shattered with broken glass. Lonnie Stewart, 60, was angry that the Family Dollar store down the street, one of the few places locals can walk to get groceries, was looted.
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“The ability to exercise First Amendment rights is a critically important part of our democracy and the pursuit of justice,” said Mr. Evers. “But there remains a line between peaceful assembly and what we saw last night that put individuals, families and businesses in danger.”
Anger over the shooting spread Monday night to nearby communities and to the state capital, Madison, where windows were broken and fires lighted, according to social-media video confirmed by Storyful. Protesters also marched in Los Angeles and New York, chanting for justice for Jacob Blake, the 29-year old Black man who police shot several times in the back on Sunday.
A video that went viral Sunday showed Mr. Blake rounding a silver SUV as officers followed with weapons drawn. An officer can be heard screaming, “Drop the knife,” but it isn’t clear from the video whether Mr. Blake is holding anything. When Mr. Blake opened the door of the vehicle, an officer grabbed his white tank top and shot him multiple times from behind. Another video with a different angle of the shooting, which left Mr. Blake hospitalized, showed officers trying to pin him to the ground seconds before firing.
At a press conference Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Blake’s mother, Julia Jackson, called for an end to the violence in her son’s name. She said that she is praying for all of the police officers, their families and the community. “Let’s use our hearts, our love and our intelligence to work together to show the rest of the world how humans are supposed to treat each other,” she said. “America is great when we behave greatly.”
Standing in front of the Kenosha County Courthouse where protesters and police clashed the night before, attorneys representing Mr. Blake said at least one bullet went through his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed for now. His liver and kidney were damaged, he has holes in his stomach, and his colon and small intestine were removed, the attorneys said. He was also shot in his arm. He is currently in surgery.
Patrick Salvi, one of Mr. Blake’s attorneys, said they plan to file a civil lawsuit to seek money to pay for Mr. Blake’s medical care and to hold police accountable. Another attorney said they want the officers who shot Mr. Blake to be terminated.
The police haven’t communicated with the family or Mr. Blake’s attorneys, they said. Mr. Blake is currently on pain medications and isn’t lucid, said his mother and Mr. Salvi, so he hasn’t been able to explain to them anything about the shooting.
Police said Monday they were responding to a domestic incident when the shooting occurred but have been silent since. They haven’t said if Mr. Blake was charged with anything.
Police also haven’t said if the officers who shot Mr. Blake were wearing body cameras, but it appears unlikely. In 2017, the city unanimously voted to approve body cameras for its officers but tabled the idea over the approximately $1 million expense and unresolved issues about privacy and how data should be stored.
A protester returning tear gas to police after a crowd gathered to demonstrate in Kenosha, Wis., on Monday night. Police monitoring protesters outside the Kenosha County Courthouse.PHOTOS: ALEX WROBLEWSKI FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL(2)
According to a Broadcastify recording of police radio from Sunday night, officers went to Mr. Blake’s home after a caller said that he had taken some keys and was refusing to give them back.
Court records show Mr. Blake was arrested for driving without a license in 2018. There was also a warrant for his arrest filed in Wisconsin Circuit Court in July on charges of criminal trespass, domestic abuse and third-degree sexual assault.
Ben Crump, an attorney retained by Mr. Blake’s family, has said Mr. Blake was helping to de-escalate the situation on Sunday when officers initially used a stun gun on him, and that Mr. Blake was walking away from police to check on his children when he was shot. Mr. Crump didn’t respond to a request for comment on Mr. Blake’s criminal record.
Kenosha isn’t the kind of city that is accustomed to the national spotlight.
The lakeside city of just under 100,000 people has seen some years without any homicides. It is the kind of place Chicagoans drive to on weekends to enjoy the quiet beach and swimming. A former manufacturing hub, Kenosha was once a city that leaned heavily Democrat. But today, Kenosha’s politics are split roughly down the middle. The city voted to elect Donald Trump in the last presidential election by a slim margin.
As Keith Bosman stepped out onto 22nd Avenue in Kenosha’s Uptown neighborhood Tuesday, his face twisted with emotion. Neighbors were helping each other clean up the wreckage and board up the streets remaining businesses in preparation for more chaos to come. Some buildings were still smoldering by late afternoon.
The city’s mayor until 2016 and a longtime member of the city council, Mr. Bosman helped build Kenosha. He knows too well how long it takes to rebuild, he said.
“You work hard to improve things and then you get this,” he said. “I didn’t have any idea it was this bad. This is bad.”
The city is 80% white, and about 12% Black, according to the most recent census data.
As chaos ensued inside the city this week, the city’s police department was overwhelmed. With 223 full-time positions, according to the city’s most recent adopted budget, the department has 151 patrol officers who typically work in three shifts. The city’s website was down Tuesday. Calls to the mayor’s office rang and rang. The city courthouse and administration building was shut.
Amber Cochran, 30, a Kenosha native, said she was at the Kenosha Rotary safety center directing the gathering of supplies to try to help with the cleanup. But then the police warned volunteers to go home, saying more protest activity was expected in the area at noon.
“We just recovered from the pandemic,” said Ms. Cochran. “And now here we are, protests and buildings are just being burned. I’m feeling all of the emotions. I’m sick to my stomach.”
She said the destruction pushes away some people who want to listen.
“I feel like we’re at a point where we can’t make a right decision no matter what you do,” she said.
