Kenosha police union gives its version of Blake shooting

KENOSHA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The Kenosha police union offered their account Friday, Aug. 28, of officers’ perspectives on what happened prior to the shooting of Jacob Blake.

A statement from Brendan Matthews, attorney for the Kenosha Professional Police Association, says the DOJ's depiction of events is "riddled with incomplete information."

According to Matthews, officers were dispatched to the location due to a complaint that Blake was attempting to steal the caller's keys and vehicle.

He says the officers were aware of Blake's former warrant for felony sexual assault (3rd degree) before arriving on scene.

The statement says Blake was not breaking up a fight between two women when officers arrived. It also says that the SUV seen in the widely-circulated video did not belong to Blake.

It goes on to claim that Blake was armed with a knife that officers did not see initially, but saw while they were on the passenger side of the vehicle. Matthews says officers issued repeated commands for Blake to drop the knife and he did not comply.

He says Blake was uncooperative and non-complaint with verbal commands, so officers went "hands-on." When he was resistant, he says officers tased him.

When the Taser did not incapacitate Blake, Matthews says officers once more went "hands-on."

He claims Blake then fought with the officers, putting of them in a headlock. A second Taser was then deployed, which also had no effect.

It was at this point, according to Matthews, that officers drew their firearms.