Wisconsin Attorney General Picks Cop Defender, 'Company Man,' to Review Probe of Killer Kenosha Cop

Update: Madison Police Chief Noble Wray's cops were vicious punks who knew that Wray always had their backs for whatever they did to the public. See Madison Bartender: 'The police almost killed this guy.'

Madison, Wisconsin — Attorney General Josh Kaul (D) signals he'll cover up Kenosha police misconduct in his announcement that he  chose a retired police chief to review the Dept of Justice investigation of Kenosha cop Rusten Sheskey's shooting Jacob S. Blake seven times in the back.

Kaul said he chose retired Madison Police Chief Noble Wray to review the DoJ mandated probe at the request of Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley (D), (Wisconsin Dept of Justice).

Using Wray as a consultant puts a black face on the expected coming no-charge decision. The appointment of Wray follows weeks of the DoJ releasing shaded facts and half truths to justify a no-charge decision against the racist cop Sheskey.

Wray's Troubled Tenure

Wray served as police chief from 2004-13, overseeing the Madison Police militarization, including the notorious new normal killing-first policy that drove Mayor Paul Soglin to defeat in 2018.

Noble Wray's tenure includes his steadfast defense of the infamous 2012 police killing of Paul Heenan.

Wray specifically defended the racist cop Stephen Heimsness' killing of the innocent Heenan.

Writes Madison human rights activist, Amelia Royko Maurer:

Kenosha D.A. Gravely and AG Josh Kaul have chosen former Madison Police Chief Noble Wray to review the Jacob Blake investigative file. They’re doing this because they believe that Wray’s identity alone will pacify those within the Black communities of Wisconsin who have been protesting Blake’s murder. They are doing this so they can say “how can the exoneration of Blake’s murderer be racist if it was done by a Black man?”

While a nice man, Chief Wray is the least objective and impartial person they could have found for this review. He is a “company man” through and through. Let’s briefly review who Chief Wray is and some of what he did here in Madison.

Chief Wray clearly wishes to make a name for himself as a police oversight expert and so it makes sense that over the past year, Wray lobbied against the Civilian Oversight Board (that won’t employ former MPD officers) claiming it wasn't necessary since we have the Police and Fire Commission knowing full well the two are completely different entities with different functions and under different jurisdiction.

Chief Wray also tried to convince the Madison Common Council that the Internal Monitor (that can’t be a former MPD officer) was unnecessary and would cause friction between the chief and the mayor.  As two separate chiefs and one expert in civilian oversight put it “if the chief has nothing to hide, the have nothing to fear.”.  But Chief Wray had a lot to hide so it makes complete sense for him to have advocated against civilian oversight and objectively impartial oversight period.

Chief Wray was Madison’s police chief in 2012, when Paulie Heenan was murdered by then Officer Steve Heimsness. Wray, being anything but objective, exonerated Heimsness in the media a couple days after Paulie was murdered and a full month before the criminal investigation was complete. Half of the Madison Police Department thought Heimsness was going to jail but Wray told me 8 times (because I asked him 8 times) that he trusted our lives in Heimsness’ hands.  He refused to allow an external review of the criminal investigation. He found Heimsness to be honorable, honest and good. He said this knowing that Heimsness had been accused of hazing a female officer and lying about it - a case he was forced (by that same female officer, Sarah Mackasey) to reopen after exonerating Heimsness. Only then did he find 118 reasons to fire Heimsness including but murdering an unarmed man wasn’t one of them.
The list of Heimsness’s offenses include stealing, hazing, saying racist things, harassment, making statements about murdering people and hours before he murdered Paulie he wrote that he was "the right cop for the wrong job, no witnesses, no problem.”  Much of what  he got in trouble for was written on the police messaging system. His behavior and Wray’s negligence in oversight led to the destruction of an officer's job.

The Madison chief prior to Wray had a policy for reviewing the police messaging data system but Wray had discontinued it. He didn’t seem to oversee or manage much actually and any progressive steps towards shifting power away from punitive responses to restorative ones were ones that he was forced into.

Sometime in 2013, retired Captain of Training and Personnel Chief Maples called Wray out for failing to promote any BIPOC or women in general to meaningful positions. He had flanked himself with conservative white men and did little to make the department safe for anyone else. 

This all being said, we have a presidential election coming up, racism is a hot topic for the candidates and this is currently the most high profile case in the country. Also, Blake survived. Wray doesn’t take risks where the gain isn’t obvious to him and it is much safer for Law Enforcement, the AG, the DA to find an officer in the wrong if the victim is still alive and in this case, hiring Wray takes the pressure off of the DA and Kenosha’s Chief. Wray might have more to gain in finding the officer at fault but whatever decision he does make will be about what he has to gain from it and not justice, at all.

Other cops who worked in Wray's regime — Justin Bailey, Gary Pihlaja and Matt Kenny — later gunned down Ashley DiPiazza in 2014, and Tony Robinson in 2015.

Wray never issued a public statement objecting to any Madison police killings.

Noble Wray is putting on a show now; he will give his imprimatur to another sordid story of Wisconsin law enforcement.

The Wisconsin Dept of Justice Sept 21, 2020 press release is reproduced below:

UPDATE: Kenosha Officer-Involved Shooting
Sep 21 2020

KENOSHA, Wis. Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley today provided an update regarding the investigation of the officer-involved shooting (OIS) of Jacob Blake.

At DA Graveley’s request, AG Kaul has identified a consultant to review the investigative file and provide the district attorney with an analysis of the incident. DA Graveley and AG Kaul agree that having such an analysis prepared for the district attorney’s consideration will serve the interests of justice in this case. The consultant identified by AG Kaul, who is being retained by DA Graveley, is Wisconsin native and retired Madison, Wis. Police Chief Noble Wray.

The shooting of Mr. Blake has been vigorously and thoroughly investigated. At this time, the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) is in the final stages of its investigation, and it will soon provide the investigative file to Chief Wray. While investigative files from DCI’s investigations of OIS cases contain reports regarding the relevant facts, they do not contain charging recommendations.

The next phase in this case will be Chief Wray’s review of the file and preparation of his analysis. Chief Wray’s analysis will assist the district attorney in his review of the facts and their relationship with standard law enforcement practices as he makes a charging decision.

“At the request of DA Graveley, I have identified an independent expert who can help ensure a just outcome in this case,” said Attorney General Kaul. “Noble Wray is a longtime Wisconsin resident and a widely respected retired Madison Police Chief who has extensive experience in law enforcement, including experience at the national level as a police reform specialist for the U.S. Department of Justice.”

When DCI is the lead investigating agency of a shooting involving a law enforcement officer, DCI aims to provide its reports of the incident to the prosecutor within 30 days. In this case, the prosecutor has directed that those reports be forwarded to a consultant for review and analysis. Following review and analysis by the consultant, the prosecutor will confer with the consultant, review the reports of the investigation, and then make an independent determination about what charges, if any, are appropriate. If the prosecutor determines there is no basis for prosecution of the law enforcement officer, and no other circumstances prevent the release, DCI will thereafter make the reports available to the public.

DOJ has previously provided the following information:

On the evening of Sunday, August 23, 2020, Kenosha Police Department officers were dispatched to a residence in the 2800 block of 40th Street after a female caller reported that her boyfriend was present and was not supposed to be on the premises.

During the incident, officers attempted to arrest Jacob S. Blake, age 29. After the initial attempt to arrest Mr. Blake, Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey deployed a taser to attempt to stop Mr. Blake. When that attempt failed, Kenosha Police Officer Vincent Arenas also deployed his taser, however that taser was also not successful in stopping Mr. Blake.

Mr. Blake walked around his vehicle, opened the driver’s side door, and leaned forward. While holding onto Mr. Blake’s shirt, Officer Rusten Sheskey fired his service weapon 7 times. Officer Sheskey fired the weapon towards Mr. Blake’s back. No other officer fired their weapon. Kenosha Police Department does not have body cameras, therefore the officers were not wearing body cameras.

The shooting officer, Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey, has been a law enforcement officer with Kenosha Police Department for seven years. Kenosha Police Officer Vincent Arenas has served with Kenosha Police Department since February 2019, with prior service with the United States Capitol Police Department. Also present was Kenosha Police Officer Brittany Meronek who joined Kenosha Police Department in January of this year.

During the investigation following the initial incident, Mr. Blake admitted that he had a knife in his possession. DCI agents recovered a knife from the driver’s side floorboard of Mr. Blake’s vehicle. A search of the vehicle located no additional weapons.

Law enforcement immediately provided medical aid to Mr. Blake. Flight for Life transported Mr. Blake to Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.

DCI is leading this investigation and is assisted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Wisconsin State Patrol and Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office. All involved law enforcement are fully cooperating with DCI during this investigation. The involved officers have been placed on administrative leave.

DCI, along with the FBI, have completed the following as part of the investigation:

    Conducted 88 witness interviews,
    Collected 102 evidence items,
    Downloaded 28 videos for review,
    Issued 4 search warrants, and,
    Dedicated over 600 hours working on this case as of Saturday, August 29, 2020.

DCI is continuing to review evidence and determine the facts of this incident and will turn over investigative reports to a prosecutor following a complete and thorough investigation.

No additional details are currently available.

Please direct all media inquiries regarding this incident to DOJ.

PTSD-afflicted Army Sergeant arrested at Press Conference

Update III: Army Desertion Rate Highest Since 1980

Update II: Local news, Watertown, NY- Just as his press conference about his mental illness was coming to an end Sergeant Brad Gaskins was arrested. When Gaskins asked what he did wrong an officer responded "you're a deserter". Watch the video five grafs into the story in by hitting "Play" in the PTSD a growing problem in the military box.

Update: NPR - Army Dismissals for Mental Health, Misconduct Rise
by Daniel Zwerdling

The U.S. government arrested another whistleblower: An Army Sergeant looking for help for his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Via Daily Kos, the following is written by an Army veteran, Mike Bailey, whose blog, Military & Veterans: Politics for the Deserving, runs in the politics section of his local paper, The State newspaper in South Carolina.
by Mike Bailey
Fri Nov 16, 2007 at 03:18:57 AM PST

This is the story of how the federal government is choosing to handle the case of one soldier with PTSD that they were failing to treat, he sought medical assistance from a local civlian hospital, where he was given he felt effective treatment. He asked for more time to be treated by the hospital, his chain of command denied it, saying it would delay his processing by the Army.

That is when SGT Gaskins made the improper choice of leaving without permission, the military calls the first 30 days Abesent without Leave or AWOL after 30 days the term is changed to desertion, and during the time of war, desertion can be published severely, up to and including the death penalty, I will grant the position that no one has been given the ultimate sentence since WW2.

Since then mostly soldiers age given a few years at the most in a military prison. Some are even just given bad conduct discharges and let out of the military with no veterans benefits and no compensation for war time medical problems, including PTSD. They are just sent home with a "black mark" on their record that will prevent them from obtaining a decent job from the government (a secure future) many civilian companies will even reject the idea of hiring veterans with BCD discharges. Few companies are willing to take a risk on someone with a history of bad conduct.

The real question comes down to what are we as a nation going to do for the men and women who have PTSD and that our military system is failing to treat and assist these combat veterans get their lives straight or into an effective treatment programs.

I can NOT defend SGT Gaskins choice to desert, but on the other hand I am appalled at the Army's unwillingness to help their own. Here is a man who has been deployed three times to areas of conflict or outright war in his eight year career, they owe him help, not prosecution. The effects of PTSD lead you to make bad decisions, lack of sleep, paranoia, reliving the events over and over in your head, exaggerated startle response, overly alert, up all hours of the night checking doors and locks, windows because you don't feel safe, etc. There are many more symptoms of PTSD, many soldiers turn to alcohol, drugs legal and illegal to help them cope, which in turn leads to more problems in and out of the Army.

This AP article explains SGT Gaskins problems
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — A soldier who served two combat tours in Iraq was arrested Wednesday for leaving the Army without permission more than a year ago to seek treatment for post traumatic stress disorder.

At a news conference hours before his arrest, Sgt. Brad Gaskins said he left the base in August 2006 because the Army wasn't providing effective treatment after he was diagnosed with PTSD and severe depression.

"They just don't have the resources to handle it, but that's not my fault," Gaskins said.

Tod Ensign, an attorney with Citizen Soldier, a GI rights group that is representing Gaskins, said the case is part of a "coming tsunami" of mental health problems involving Iraq and Afghanistan vets.
Last month, the Veterans Administration said more than 100,000 soldiers were being treated for mental health problems, and half of those specifically for PTSD.

Gaskins, 25, of East Orange, N.J., was taken into custody at a Watertown cafe by civilian police officers from Fort Drum and two local police officers, Ensign said. The lawyer said he had been on the phone with military prosecutors working out the details of Gaskins' surrender when the soldier was arrested.

The article also explains that SGT Gaskins wife has legally seperated from him and he is allowed only supervised visits with his children. This happens to many PTSD veterans.

Myself, my children will not allow me to see my grandchildren because of my PTSD and their desires not to expose their kids to my irrational behavior at times, I can't blame them, I left definate impressions on their childhood. PTSD does not only affect the veteran/soldier the entire community around them is impacted by it, spouses, kids, friends, co-workers, neighbors, police and the court system usually all end up involved in a PTSD veterans lives, in a less than helpful way.I have no one to blame for not seeing my grandchildren other than myself, we are working on reestablishing the family relationship with the aid of the VA doctors and my fifth wife's involvement.

I know most of you remember the "marlboro man" Blake Miller made famous by the photoo coming out of Falluja in 2004, the photographer that took that picture has a 2 day story about his experience with Blake since Blake was discharged from the Marine Corp because of PTSD.
In this LA Times article by Luis Sinco the photographer that took the now famous "marlboro man" pic. Their lives are now intertwined and Luis feels he owes Blake for giving him unwanted attention. Needless to say, Blake was already going to have issues with PTSD, with or without this picture becoming front page news.

Blake has been given many opportunities many of us would give body parts for, scholarships to Yale, expensive rehab programs for free, etc, he has chosen to withdraw from them all and head back to the mountains of West Virginia.

This is the letter I sent to Luis yesterday:

Luis, you are NOT responsible for what happens to Blake Miller, he is. You were just doing what you do, document the facts with pics, Blake was fighting in a war zone, you two interfaced and for some reason his pic became known as the "Marlboro man" a Marine Hero, hero is a word they throw around to easy now a days. He was just like any other marine who lived to come home.

Like many other Marines and soldiers he developed PTSD, there are currently 3 million disabled veterans in America, approx 1/3 of them have PTSD to some degree, there are only 250,000 veterans rated at the 100% level or 70% TDIU which is paid at the 100% level, most PTSD vets are rated 70% and then are considered unemployable so they pay them at the 100% rate. I don't know which category Blake falls into.

Myself I am rated 100% scheduler for PTSD P&T which means the VA considers me permanently disabled by just my PTSD regardless of my many other health issues related to service which they want to ignore, because it involves a classified project during the Cold War and they don't want to deal with it. It has been in the public realm since the Church Committee in 1973 the CIA's MKULTRA LSD experiments, black eye time.

Luis, your responsibility it to yourself, your wife and your family, don't let Blake drag you down. I have a younger brother in prison in California at Pleasant Valley for meth problems, he's a repeat offender, I have no more chance of helping him than you do Blake. He was given a very sweet chance to get into Yale.

But soon Miller began talking about going home.

Once again, I made the cross-country trip. I wanted to grab him by the shoulders and tell him not to blow an excellent opportunity to put his life back together. A chance to go to Yale? I would jump at that myself.
But Miller wasn't receptive. He had scuffled with some local motorcycle toughs and felt threatened. He missed the mountains. He wanted to go home. Period.

There are very few people given a chance like that, and HE blew it, not you, not Jessica, Blake did, he can keep drowning his problems in booze and maybe illegal drugs for the next few decades, he may even end up in prison like many of the PTSD vets, because of the problems they let themselves get into.

There is a ex Captain in prison in California due to drug addiction caused by pain and PTSD, he used an unloaded gun to rob pharmacies to get his pills, he did it, not the PTSD, PTSD is a mental health issue, it is not an excuse for every thing a veteran does.

I feel for Blake, I walked in his shoes, but I never threw things away as bad as he did, maybe I did I walked away from the Post Office after 17 years without a pension or any other benefits, 7 heart attacks and a stroke just left me wanting out, and I walked in May 2000.

It took me until DEC 2002 to ask my VA doctor for a referral to mental health due to my problems 27 years after the incident that caused my PTSD I became I thought good at coping thru life, my 4 divorces and many jobs, 2 wars, and the denial of being able to see my 5 grand children because of my PTSD. I didn't do it as well as I thought, medications help, counseling helps, does it make the PTSD go away, NO, I stay at home, I don't drink, I spend my time advocating for other veterans from my power chair and my computer mostly on Daily Kos as testvet 6778.

Luis, your debt to Blake has been paid, you and your family come first.
Mike Bailey Columbia SC I grew up in Riverside Norte Vista High School.

Our nation does owe these combat veterans that developed PTSD from repeated deployments over and over to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo etc. What are they supposed to do, when their lives have been irrevocably damaged by their service, will some of these PTSD vets get better over time, maybe and some may get worse, the thing with PTSD is, there are the worst days, and better days seldom are there any "good days" lives have been changed, you can't go back in time before the damage occurred, can you learn to live with it, yes many have, for some of us, it is withdrawal into our own homes and the safety of our sanctuary, others find comfort in being in the woods, camping, fishing and hunting, like everyone else, PTSD veterans find different outlets for their anger and issues.

The men and women with severe and chronic PTSD will at some point become unemployable for jobs with the phone company, the Postal Service, Police Officers etc, they will go thru many low paying jobs, being fired for anger management issuse, drunk at work, missing to many days etc.

Is it the right thing to just throw them out of the military with bad discharges either BCDs or the now Infamous PDO's Personality Disorders that the government has been doing, the approximately 22,000 men like Specialist Town shown in this article from the Nation? No, we as a nation owe them better than this, that is just my two cents.
###

Joe Biden's Vacant Comment on Rittenhouse Verdict Comes as Protesters Demand Fed Civil Rights Probe

Biden Responds with Platitudes
'Whole Damn System Corrupt as Hell'
'Kenosha Racist as Hell'

Madison, Wisconsin — A Kenosha jury gave its imprimatur to vigilantism against black liberation protesters, finding killer Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty of five charges related to firing his AR-15 at Black Lives Matter protesters in Aug 2020, killing two and grievously wounding another.

The verdict was announced November 20, 2021.

Joe Biden's statement on the verdict offered insult to injury to a shocked Wisconsin community that watched Rittenhouse gun down two people in cold blood in videos, only to have a Kenosha County jury call it self-defense.

The verdict comes as the Wisconsin Judiciary and Wisconsin criminal justice system have become widely regraded as corrupt institutions dominated by fiefdoms, political parties and myriad bad actors such as the buffoonish Judge Bruce Schroeder who presided over the Rittenhouse trial with a mixture of narcissism and pettiness.

Furthermore, the Blake family stated the Biden administration has "sold out" the black and brown communities, in reaction to the verdict. (ABC7, Chicago; Channel 5, Chicago).

Reports ABC7, Chicago on the Jacob Blake family speaking for Rittenhouse's victims:

'They chose to represent themselves and come out here to march in peace for Jacob Blake - it led to their death.'

Blake is a Black man who was shot seven times by a white Kenosha police officer last summer, which sparked demonstrations that drew the then 17-year-old Rittenhouse to the Wisconsin community.

Blake's uncle, Justin Blake, said he was in 'shock and awe' after hearing the jury acquitted the Antioch teen on all counts, including in the fatal shooting of two men.

'How many cases do you need to see of Caucasian cops or other people walking out the door after murdering people that are either African American or supporting African Americans,' Justin said.

Rittenhouse fatally shot Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, Anthony Huber, 26, and wounded demonstrator Gaige Grosskreutz, now 28.

'This attack on these two young men who had no weapon to defend themselves against an AR-15. They chose to represent themselves and come out here to march in peace for Jacob Blake - it led to their death,' Justin Blakd said.

Justin Blake repeated his call for the U.S. Dpt of Justice to launch a probe of Rittenhouse and law enforcement's conduct leading to the Rittenhouse's killings.

Meanwhile, Joe Biden's statement on the verdict rang hollow.

Biden's statement is reproduced below:

While the verdict in Kenosha will leave many Americans feeling angry and concerned, myself included, we must acknowledge that the jury has spoken. I ran on a promise to bring Americans together, because I believe that what unites us is far greater than what divides us.  I know that we’re not going to heal our country’s wounds overnight, but I remain steadfast in my commitment to do everything in my power to ensure that every American is treated equally, with fairness and dignity, under the law.

I urge everyone to express their views peacefully, consistent with the rule of law.  Violence and destruction of property have no place in our democracy.  The White House and Federal authorities have been in contact with Governor Evers’s office to prepare for any outcome in this case, and I have spoken with the Governor this afternoon and offered support and any assistance needed to ensure public safety.

 ###

The ACLU also issued a long statement which is reproduced below:

Kyle Rittenhouse Didn’t Act Alone: Law Enforcement Must Be Held Accountable

The massive show of force from 40 law enforcement agencies in Kenosha didn’t make anyone safer.

By Leah Watson , Staff Attorney,
ACLU's Racial Justice Program

For two weeks, we’ve heard trial testimony and seen evidence of the events that occurred on August 25, 2020 — the night that Kyle Rittenhouse shot and killed two people and injured another during a Black Lives Matter protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin. While Rittenhouse was not held accountable, he was not the only one whose conduct on that deadly night should be scrutinized. The actions — and inaction — of the Kenosha Police Department and the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department in the preceding 72 hours played a critical part in the tragic events that took place.

As we reflect on that night, we must remember what ignited these protests. Two months after the murder of George Floyd, on August 23, 2020, Kenosha Police shot a Black man, Jacob Blake, in the back multiple times, paralyzing him. Faced with this latest manifestation of law enforcement’s systemic mistreatment and disregard for the lives of Black and Brown people, people took to the streets of Kenosha. Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth oversaw law enforcement’s response to these protests, including the coordination of over 40 local, state, and federal agencies.

The day after Kenosha Police shot Mr. Blake, former city alderman and self-proclaimed commander of the Kenosha Guard Kevin Mathewson wrote a racially charged “call to action” inviting armed civilians to protect Kenosha from “evil thugs” the following day. The comments on his Facebook invitation, corresponding Reddit threads, and Infowars degenerated into racist threats to kill and maim protestors.

On the night of August 25, law enforcement not only failed to protect protestors calling for police accountability and more humane treatment of Black people, but actively put them in harm’s way. Officers enabled and encouraged predominantly white, right-wing armed civilians and militia groups that night, creating a situation in which tensions escalated and people were killed.

Following the violence in Kenosha, an investigative team at the ACLU filed approximately 40 public records requests to local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies; reviewed more than 800 records and 50 hours of video footage; and conducted over 40 in-depth interviews with community members to better understand what happened in Kenosha and how we can avoid these tragedies in the future. Here is what we found:

Kenosha law enforcement was aware of the threats that these armed civilians and militia groups posed to protestors exercising their First Amendment rights. Mathewson asked Sheriff Beth and Kenosha Police Chief David Miskinis to deputize these armed civilians and militia groups, noting that more than 3,000 people accepted the online invitation to “protect” the city. In addition to this correspondence, community members in Kenosha contacted law enforcement with concerns for their safety after reading this online vitriol. Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security told local law enforcement that the Boogaloo Bois, a right-wing group with a history of violence, were planning an event in Kenosha on August 24. The Federal Bureau of Investigation also warned that the conflicting ideologies of protestors and these armed civilians and militia groups could “potentially be a flashpoint for violence” the next day.

Despite the obvious safety threats, law enforcement embraced the incendiary presence of armed civilians and militia groups. In a widely seen video, law enforcement thanked and even offered water to the armed civilians and militia groups attending the protests, as they instructed those protesting police brutality to leave. In text messages retrieved through our public records requests, after someone circulated a video of the Rittenhouse shootings, a Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department officer commented “nice video” in a message to colleagues and added that he was “[l]istening to gunfire. Such a nice night.”

In fact, it appears Kenosha law enforcement coordinated an effort to push protestors south on Sheridan Road, towards armed civilians and militia groups. Ryan Thomas Balch, an armed civilian affiliated with the Boogaloo Bois, was recorded saying on the night of the shootings, “Do you know what the cops told us today? They were like, ‘We’re gonna push them down by you, because you can deal with them, and then we’re gonna leave.’” In an August 26, 2020 written statement, Balch added, “K[enosha] P[olice] D[epartment] made a conscious decision to abandon the people of Kenosha to people they felt justified in using machines and weapons of war against. And were going to piss them off and drive them at us and let the chips fall where they may.”

The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department, led by Sheriff Beth, commanded law enforcement agencies to clear Civic Center Park and push protestors south towards the danger that lay multiple blocks from the park at the intersection of 60th and Sheridan. Multiple law enforcement officers documented their knowledge that armed civilians and militia members were concentrated in that direction, near 60th and Sheridan. Officers from various law enforcement agencies described the use of armored vehicles, foam bullets, tear gas, and flash bangs to herd protestors from the park toward the intersection, and to prevent the return of protestors to the park. After pushing the protestors south for over an hour, Kenosha law enforcement took a strategically timed break, consistent with Balch’s description. These efforts were well documented in the records our investigative team obtained:

• 9:43 pm: The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department documented “gas being deployed in front of the courthouse, goal to push crowd south.”
• 10:32 pm: Kenosha Police Department dispatched patrol to 58th and 8th to “keep crowd moving south on Sheridan.”
• 10:40 pm: Three bearcats moved south from 56th on Sheridan.
• 10:44 pm: Law enforcement continued to push protestors down the road.
• 10:57 pm: Law enforcement took a break.
• 11:12 pm: The Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department reported that protestors “have been pushed south and we are holding our position at the park.”
• 11:40 pm: Bearcats from Racine, Walworth, Waukesha, and Sauk Counties held protestors at 60th and Sheridan, and noted a loud crowd at the gas station.
• 11:44 pm: An Oneida County bearcat moved to 60th and Sheridan.
• 11:50 pm: Rittenhouse shootings begin at 63rd and Sheridan.

The West Allis Police Department also described its actions:

At the request of tactical command, the armored vehicles and crowd control [o]fficers would direct the protestors south and hold or move the protestors south and back away north. Tactical command requested several times for this process to occur which led to the protestors being directed as far south as 60th St. & Sheridan.

Three important lessons emerge from this tragedy.

First, entrenched racism contributed to the events that unfolded. Make no mistake, the shooting of Jacob Blake and the related protests and fatalities stem from the deep-seated white supremacy that pervades our criminal legal system. Police officers brutalizing people of color who are protesting that very brutality and leaving people of color and their supporters at the mercy of armed white vigilantes is a pattern that recalls the origin of American police in slave patrols. These patrols sought to capture and return formerly enslaved people to the violence of enslavement, and their later connections to white supremacist agitation during the Civil Rights movement are echoed in the violence seen in Kenosha. In today’s world, Black and Brown people are not only targeted by police and frequently treated as presumptively guilty, but white people brandishing weapons of war are given the benefit of the doubt and even encouraged by officers of those same police agencies.

Second, law enforcement must not be permitted to weaponize the presence of armed civilians and militia. Jacob Blake’s shooting and the subsequent tragic, fatal shootings by Rittenhouse should usher in a significant wave of change, not only in Wisconsin but across the nation. Kenosha is not even the latest example of this pattern of police ignoring (at best) or facilitating (at worst) white mob violence: Following the January 6 insurrection, it was revealed that over 30 off-duty police officers attended the rally, and several joined the mob that stormed the Capitol. We must reexamine the roles and powers of police in American society, and listen to the communities of color in Kenosha and elsewhere that are calling for new approaches to public safety that protect all people, regardless of the color of their skin.

Finally, more officers and weapons do not increase safety. Law enforcement should play no role in protests, unless it is to protect our First Amendment rights, and they should not use violence to control the crowd or silence those they disagree with. Beyond the context of protests, there is little evidence that police effectively prevent or reduce violence, while there are many alternatives to policing that do make communities safer.

As our investigation illustrates, approximately 40 local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies responded to the protests in Kenosha, utilizing various forms of force against protestors. This massive show of force failed to keep people safe — and in fact facilitated grave harm by pushing protesters into close proximity with Kyle Rittenhouse and other armed white civilians. The violence that night is a further reminder that well-resourced law enforcement agencies are failing to protect and even harming the communities they are sworn to serve. It’s time to acknowledge this failure and invest in measures that actually keep communities safe.

Wisconsin DA Set to No-charge Kenosha Cop for Mayhem, Attempted Murder — Cop Shot Black Man Seven Times in Back in Broad Daylight, in Middle of George Floyd Protests

Update: Democrat District Attorney Michael Graveley: No charges against Kenosha cop.

Madison, Wisconsin — During the Spring-Summer Black Lives Matter protests following the murder of George Floyd, Kenosha police had a message for black folks and their allies: Black lives do not matter, we can do anything.

The message was delivered Sunday night, August 23, 2020, by Kenosha cop Rusten Sheskey who opened fire, point-blank and shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back.

Mr. Blake had apparently reasoned that the human garbage populating the Kenosha Police Dept didn't see Blake as human, so he walked away after he attempted to break up a fight one Summer night. Blake was right.

Since the municipal murder club sprung into action, the two major political parties have fled the Black Lives Matter movement like folks were one black man in a tee-shirt walking down the street.

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul (D) has signaled he'll cover up Kenosha police misconduct in his announcement, even choosing a discredited, retired police chief to review the Dept of Justice white-washing cop Sheskey's attempted rub-out.

The DoJ has been offering public updates on its investigation clearing the Kenosha cops, though the Dept is supposed be neutral and objective. It's not. The DoJ is effectively a public relations firm for police.

As noted here in late August, the Wisconsin Dept of Justice will complete its investigation of Kenosha cop, Rusten Sheskey, and clear him, Noble Wray will sign off, whereupon Kenosha District Attorney Michael Graveley will decline to prosecute for major felonies.

This is Wisconsin, and it is racist to the bone, and it loves its police destroying black lives, maiming black lives, charge-stacking, defaming, and so on. It's sport and a career for police here.

Jacob Blake's family and friends know this.

The DoJ exists for cops, is staffed by cops, breaks the law for cops and will deliver the report within days that allows the Kenosha District Attorney to clear the would-be murderer of any wrongdoing. 

Severing a spine, it's all good, mayhem is okay if the right person is maimed.

Graveley, a racist who gets bi-partisan political support, loves prosecuting black people, but would never touch a cop, no matter how outrageous the conduct. (See, for example, Harvard Crimson and the absurd case of Chrystul D. Kizer).

Screw over enough black people, and law enforcement will make you prosecutor of the year.

The DoJ won't wait to release its investigation in its entirety. No.

The DoJ will release its report drip-by-drip, half-truth by half-truth to conduct a public relations exercise in an attempt to clear would-be murderer Rusten Sheskey.

The clear-Sheskey project has already begun, (DoJ. Kenosha Officer Involved Shooting, Aug 26 2020).

In tone, language and shading of facts, the DoJ wants to clear the name of another racist and corrupt Wisconsin law enforcement agency.

For example, the victim, Jacob Blake, did not "[admit] that he had a knife in his possession," as the DoJ Aug 26 press release states. 

Mr. Blake informed the police in answer to a routine question that he legally had a knife in his car. This is not a capital offense.

Nothing — not a severed spine, wrongful convictions, destroyed lives — will stand in the way of the mission of the DoJ to clear the police of any crime, of any act.

Don't believe me? Watch the coming days.

Drip-by-drip, no statement will be released by the DoJ that supports prosecution of Rusten Sheskey, racist piece of human garbage.

This is Wisconsin, people, and they hate "niggers," to use a charming Wisconsin colloquialism.

The Wisconsin Attorney General Joshua Kaul (D) released a press statement Aug 24, reading in part:

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaultoday released the following statement regarding the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) led investigation into the officer-involved shooting in Kenosha on Sunday, August 23, 2020.

'The Wisconsin Department of Justice is vigorously and thoroughly investigating yesterday’s officer-involved shooting in Kenosha. As with all investigations we conduct, we will unwaveringly pursue justice in this case.'

I hope for a full recovery for the man fighting for his life. He and his family are in my thoughts, as is the entire Kenosha community.'

Bullshit. I know Wisconsin. Black folk are perceived as menace just for being alive.

Rusten Sheskey knows this.

Wisconsin DoJ Sets Stage for Clearing Kenosha Cop of Mayhem and Attemped Murder of Jacob Blake

Update: Friday, August 28, DoJ offers update to generate new round of headlines for coming exoneration of killer cop.

Updated - Madison, Wisconsin — The Wisconsin Dept of Justice will complete its investigation of Kenosha cop, Rusten Sheskey, and clear him, whereupon Kenosha District Attorney Michael Graveley will decline to prosecute.

You can take it to the bank. This is Wisconsin, and it is racist to the bone, and it loves its police destroying black lives, charge-stacking, defaming, and so on. It's sport and a career for police here.

Jacob Blake's family and friends know this.

The DoJ exists for cops, is staffed by cops, breaks the law for cops and will deliver the report that allows the Kenosha District Attorney to clear the would-be murderer of any wrongdoing. Severing a spine, it's all good, mayhem is okay if the right person is maimed.

Graveley, a racist who gets bi-partisan political support, loves prosecuting black people, but would never touch a cop, no matter how outrageous the conduct. (See, for example, Harvard Crimson and the absurd case of Chrystul D. Kizer).

Screw over enough black people, and law enforcement will make you prosecutor of the year.

The DoJ won't wait to release its investigation in its entirety. No.

The DoJ will release its report drip-by-drip, half-truth by half-truth to conduct a public relations exercise in an attempt to clear would-be murderer Rusten Sheskey.

The clear-Sheskey project has already begun, (DoJ. Kenosha Officer Involved Shooting, Aug 26 2020).

In tone, language and shading of facts, the DoJ wants to clear the name of another racist and corrupt Wisconsin law enforcement agency.

For example, the victim, Jacob Blake, did not "[admit] that he had a knife in his possession," as the DoJ Aug 26 press release states. 

Mr. Blake informed the police in answer to a routine question that he legally had a knife in his car. This is not a capital offense.

Nothing — not a severed spine, wrongful convictions, destroyed lives — will stand in the way of the mission of the DoJ to clear the police of any crime, of any act.

Don't believe me? Watch the coming days.

Drip-by-drip, no statement will be released by the DoJ that supports prosecution of Rusten Sheskey, racist piece of human garbage.

This is Wisconsin, people, and they hate "niggers," to use a charming Wisconsin colloquialism.

The Wisconsin Attorney General Joshua Kaul (D) released a press statement Aug 24, reading in part:

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaultoday released the following statement regarding the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) led investigation into the officer-involved shooting in Kenosha on Sunday, August 23, 2020.

'The Wisconsin Department of Justice is vigorously and thoroughly investigating yesterday’s officer-involved shooting in Kenosha. As with all investigations we conduct, we will unwaveringly pursue justice in this case.'

I hope for a full recovery for the man fighting for his life. He and his family are in my thoughts, as is the entire Kenosha community.'

Bullshit.

Tony Evers' Cold-blooded Response to Police Attempted Murder of Jacob Blake

If police shot your friend seven times in an attempt to murder him in front of his three children, would you send a sympathy card reading: 'I offer you my empathy following police engaging with you. I hope earnestly you will not succumb to your injuries. Hope action follows my empathy.'

If you did, anyone reading the card would ask, what in the hell is wrong with you?

This is Gov Tony Evers' reaction to the latest police attempt to kill a black man.

Kenohsa police followed a man, Jacob Blake, walking to his car Sunday night and then shot him seven times in the back. The attempted murder is caught on video.

The reaction of the Wisconsin Democrat to this latest police outrage is causing that skin-crawling sensation one gets when encountering a psychopath, someone incapable of empathy and the realization that human beings are inherently worthy.

When you encounter a mal-formed human being such as a psychopath or a child molester, you want to slap the freak, and tell him to get the hell out of here.

Who witnesses cold-blood attempted murder and then writes a statement, 'I offer you my empathy. I hope earnestly you will not succumb to your injuries. Hope action follows my empathy.'

This is the low-life Evers trying to impersonate a human being.

Tony Evers. Wisconsin is now ground zero in the social justice movement and we are treated to this lunatic who is pathetically out-of-touch with the concerns of human beings.

Watch the next days, Wisconsin Democrats will not criticize Evers.

Evers' full statement sent on Twitter last night is reproduced below:

While we do not have all of the details yet, what we know for certain is that he is not the first Black man or person to have been shot or injured or mercilessly killed at the hands of individuals in law enforcement in our state or our country.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 24, 2020

We stand with all those who have and continue to demand justice, equity, and accountability for Black lives in our country—lives like those of George Floyd, of Breonna Taylor, Tony Robinson, Dontre Hamilton, Ernest Lacy, and Sylville Smith.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 24, 2020

And we stand against excessive use of force and immediate escalation when engaging with Black Wisconsinites.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 24, 2020

I have said all along that although we must offer our empathy, equally important is our action. In the coming days, we will demand just that of elected officials in our state who have failed to recognize the racism in our state and our country for far too long.

— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 24, 2020

 Video of the would-be police execution is below. Don't look away,

Wow. This Black man was shot several times in the back by @KenoshaPolice today. He was getting into his car after apparently breaking up a fight between two women. He’s in critical condition now. We demand JUSTICE! #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/I1reDEp4nw

— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) August 24, 2020

We must presume innocence! (Unless you're a Black man and a cop wants to shoot you in the back seven times in front of your children; then it's carte blanche.)

— Stephen Schaller (@cambiodoble) August 24, 2020

Cillizza and Blake Speculate on Scott Walker's Hits on Romney

Scott Walker

Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake ask What’s Scott Walker up to?

And they speculate and speculate.

Who cares?

Walker is an extremist, anti-choice, Christian whack with his hand out to the plutocrats.

Maybe Cillizza and Blake are just fishing around for fodder for their column, but Walker won't get to spend $60-million this 2014 in his reelection bid, and his attacks on women and working families won't be forgotten.

Walker won't be a "major conservative hero" for years and years.

No matter how much Wisconsin media have buried the John Doe and the federal investigation of Walker's corruption and public misuse of office up to now, this won't last forever.

What's Walker up to? Squawking till he can't anymore.

Wisconsin Criminal Justice System Performs Normally — and Insanely

The Flight of Moloch - by William Blake.
The significance of Blake's wok is the moment
when we stop using children as pawns to
sacrifice, rather as treasures to protect.

Commentary

Updated - Madison, Wisconsin — Any decent human being would decline to trick innocent people, especially children, into a false confession of a crime.

But how often have you heard of a cop or a politician speaking out against cops coercing false confessions, or framing innocent members of the public? Never, not in Wisconsin.

Who benefits by the persistence of false confessions? The victims do not; society at large does not; certainly not police-made victims; it seems the police and prosecutors are the only ones who pat themselves on the back for clearing their books of another crime while the perpetrators go free.

That's because the criminal justice and political systems act as authoritarians and have all the power when it comes to prosecuting crimes. 

The state, the sovereign, freely sacrifices innocent lives if it serves their purposes, rather than standing up for and calling out for righteous justice for the innocent.

There generally is no pre- or post-conviction review of the prosecutors and police cases, when misconduct is revealed, though there are isolated examples of this logical follow-up.

If I were a cop, and I even heard of this human rights atrocity of the police framing or coercing a false confession, I would state publicly and repeatedly, "You unbelievable coward, what is the matter with you?"

It's now routine to read of outrageous acts of police tricking children into false confessions. 

Several states have outlawed this unbelievable practice of tricking children.

But the reporting and child advocacy never take the logical next step — the condemnation of the police. We live in a politcal system in which criticism of the police almost never occurs, especially from elected Democrats and Republicans and especially in Wisconsin.

In Wisconsin, the most infamous case of police tricking and lying to children is Brendan Dassey.

After police lied, manipulated and tricked the innocent Brendan Dassey into an outrageous false confession, Wisconsin police gave the two police child molesters — Mark Wiegert (current Sheriff of the Calumet County Sheriff's Office) and Tom Fassbender (Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation investigator (ret.) — the Meritorious Service Award from the Wisconsin Association of Homicide Investigators on May 2, 2008.

That's right. Police applauded Wiegert and Fassbender for terrorizing and destroying the life of an innocent kid.

Folks, we live in a society where police routinely prey on the innocent and gullible with the objective of sending them to prison for life. That's a problem, just ask Brendan Dassey and Steven Avery, and Penny Brummer.

What is the difference between what Wiegert and Fassbender did to Brendan Dassey and what child molesters do during the commission of their crimes? Children are lured in by false promises, assaulted,  and are oblivious to what hit them.

See John Oliver's segment on the use of the Reid Technique nonsense, police interrogations and false confessions are aptly characterized as junk science.

Said Oliver: "The problem with police interrogations right now is the same problem that we have with policing at large. They're emboldened to act however they'd like in a system where they hold an undue amount of power with very few protections for civilians, especially the most vulnerable, because there can be little to no consequences for extracting a false confession."

Act locally. In Wisconsin we need to vote out Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Joshua Kaul for protecting dirty cops and keeping those whom they know to be innocent in prison.

Meanwhile, stay current on the litigation of Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey's crusade to shame Tony Evers into a pardon.

Brendan Dassey needed someone sitting with him in class to help him figure out what the teacher was asking him to do. But he had no help when interrogated. Even with help, police are trained to neutralize guardians. Lawyers can't be neutralized. @TheArcUS https://t.co/JqCn4Vgr89

— Steven A Drizin (@SDrizin) April 27, 2022

Tulsi Gabbard, Kyle Rittenshouse Defenders Go off Deep End

Rittenhouse posted bail, and then met with Proud Boys members
in a Kenosha County bar where he posed, flashing white power signs.

Updated - Madison, Wisconsin — After the Kyle Rittenhouse testimony last week, most everyone agrees this killer is dim, reckless and puerile.

But defenders of Rittenhouse's self-defense claim are proffering new justifications on the eve of closing arguments and jury deliberation this coming week.

One line of killing-justification proliferating on social media is the claim Rittenhouse's victims may have criminal records, so Rittenhouse's killings can be adduced as retroactively praiseworthy. Critics of the killings are similarly off-base in their condemnations under this justification, it is asserted. 

A second line of killing-justification is the claim that all of the people on the street protesting the maiming of Jacob Blake are arsonists, (no matter the lack of criminal records or even arrests in this argument), so all Black Lives Matter protesters present in Kenosha deserve to be killed, including the victims of Rittenhouse.

That these lines of argument are insane does not stop a lot of Rittenhouse supporters from advancing their defense of this homicidal racist.

But this weekend former U.S. Representative Tulsi Gabbard weighed in on the side of Kyle Rittenhouse, omitting mention of his Proud Boys connections, and his stated wish to fire off his AR-15 on people whom he adjudged as guilty of crimes. 

This is the kind of militarism that seems to pass muster in Gabbard's new book.

Gabbard claims Rittenhouse's motive are pure, and he just wanted to protect Kenosha.

Gabbard is off the deep end. Facile and sophomoric, her dangerous mainstreaming of vigilantism gives the green light to kill, as long as increasingly narcissistic Americans deem it necessary.

Writes Gabbard: "With no evidence, MSM & antifa-loving politicians immediately labeled Rittenhouse a white supremacist terrorist. It’s obvious now that he was just a foolish kid who felt he needed to protect people & the community from rioters & arsonists because the government failed to do so."

With no evidence, MSM & antifa-loving politicians immediately labeled Rittenhouse a white supremacist terrorist. It’s obvious now that he was just a foolish kid who felt he needed to protect people & the community from rioters & arsonists because the government failed to do so. pic.twitter.com/uhjGQtM4y4

— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) November 11, 2021

Really?

Everyone on the streets of Kenosha on Aug 25, 2020, felt individually that he or she was present out of principle, but only one person fired off his AR-15 at people, killed two people, maimed another, and traumatized families and communities for decades.

Don't believe what people say about a murdered relative. No one is ever the same. Everyone on the streets of Kenosha that night could be suffering from PTSD over Rittenhouse's horror.

Gabbard argues that since in his own mind, Rittenhouse was there to protect the City, this gives him the  right to kill.

Not even Rittenhouse's attorneys pursue this absurd line of argument, but this is good enough for Tulsi.

No sympathy from Gabbard about the Rittenhouse victims, or Jacob Blake. But Gabbard did post subsequent ruminations about World Kindness Day.

This is Wisconsin. 

People here celebrate wrongful convictions, police misconduct, but I do feel optimistic that open vigilantism won't fly, no matter the effort to superimpose reasonableness onto vicious killings, and stamp deserve-to-be-killed onto victims.

In the meantime, Tulsi Gabbard is reaching out politically to the lowest of low lives who live behind anonymous accounts, threats, calumny and bile. 

See:

You support pedophiles, I am above you. You are a trash human that lies when they feel their beliefs are threatened. Keep doing you, who knows who might find out your deepest secret. I would never be violent with someone unless in self defense.

— RustyWhaler (@RustyWhaler) November 15, 2021

If so, be a shame if certain people found out you support kid diddlers and wife beaters...

— RustyWhaler (@RustyWhaler) November 14, 2021

The new logic of the right is to accuse those criticizing killing as being "pedophiles." These are the people Tulsi Gabbard is courting.

Twitter will not take down the posts.

Michael Leon is a pedophile that is upset he got called out. He can't even define fascism and makes up lies about people threatening him. His wife finds out he likes children today, he's flailing. Hard.

— RustyWhaler (@RustyWhaler) November 15, 2021

Wisc DoJ, Kenosha Police Union Launch PR Campaign for Killer Cop as Press Descends on Kenosha

Message to National Press on Racists, Rusten Sheskey and Kyle Rittenhouse and Kenosha

Updated - Madison, Wisconsin — As the nation bears witness to the Kenosha carnage in advance of Pres Trump's Tuesday tour, some features bear notice: Wisconsin law enforcement: They lie; not just garden-variety lies, but mission-critical lies in the worst state to be black and brown.

Municipal, County, State Patrol, Capitol Police, Dept of Justice [Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI)] — multi-generational institutions perfect lies in police reports, statements at 'crime' scenes, press conferences, testilying, investigations of police conduct, defaming, bad-mouthing citizens (our brothers and sisters) and as we know, mayhem and attempted murder by police.

Name a situation in which a cop communicates and he will soon lie; no act is too petty or too vicious and inhuman for police here and candor will not precede or follow. Sever a spine, eviscerate a black man, it's all in a day's work for police who retreat to their cult, knowing their police union and in Kenosha, Democratic Party officials, will lay down cover.

The Kenosha Police union is in full-out attack mode against Jacob Blake, and you can bet they are not consulting anyone but police when they put out their propaganda.

Wisconsin is racist, certainly among the worst states in this all-American enterprise.

Kenosha stains the nation because its racists are more open about their antipathy of black people and ostentatious in their disdain for the press, civil liberties and human rights.

It's the way it is. Don't take my word, national press; seek background from Wisconsin criminal justice litigators and scholars, though it is not considered politic to state the above facts on the record. 

Better yet, ask anyone who is black in Kenosha, Wisconsin. If you're a journalist from out-of-state, literally walk up to any random black person anywhere and ask if police are racist and dishonest.

This is a bi-partisan misinformation project, apartheid and slow-motion Holocaust project, and of course Republicans are the worst statewide, not so in Kenosha. Democrats dominate City and County government, though the leading clown, the sheriff, is a Republican, like most cops.

Some of the primary law enforcement liars at work against truth and black people are, (in no particular order) heavy Democratic Party hacks:

Attorney General Josh Kaul (D) - This little turd is a particularly fetid example of a liar. By the way, this site is working with advocates for the wrongfully convicted Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey featured in the Emmy-winning Making a Murderer. Kaul abides blatant law breaking by his staff. With respect to Kenosha, Kaul's dept is already laying the groundwork for the no-charge against the racist Kenosha cop as the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) handles both public relations and crafting the case for why the racist cop should not be charged, discarding its statutory mandate to work as objective investigators. Kaul worked as federal prosecutor in Baltimore before moving back to Wisconsin. but Kaul sees no racism, and police can do no wrong, not in Baltimore, not in Kenosha.

Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis - Miskinis runs the police department as a white-power militia, under color of law, viewing with suspicion any citizens of a dark hue. Miskinis has already exonerated his police for maiming Jacob Blake, and for offering aid and comfort to the racist killer and aspiring cop, Kyle Rittenhouse. He instead blames curfew violators for being murdered by Rittenhouse. Human rights and civil liberties groups are calling for the immediate resignation of Miskinis and Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth.

Miskinis is hostile to the idea of liberal democracy and he enjoys the political support of Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian (D), a steady force against black people in a city that arrests church member in broad daylight for bringing water and food to this despicable bin of racists.

Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth - Like Miskinis, Beth fantasizes that black people should disappear and be warehoused away, as noted prominently in the Washington Post.

CNN reported on this racist, David Beth:

David Beth addressed reporters in January 2018 following the arrests of five people for shoplifting at a Tommy Hilfiger outlet store in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, and a high-speed chase that led to their arrests.

At least four of the suspects were Black, according to jail records. The fifth suspect was a minor, the sheriff's department said in a statement.

'I'm to the point that I think society has to come to a threshold where there's some people that aren't worth saving,' Beth said at the news conference a day after the incident, according to CNN affiliate WTMJ. 'We need to build warehouses, to put these people into it and lock them away for the rest of their lives.'

Kenosha County District Attorney Michael Graveley will decline to prosecute Kenosha's racist cop Rustin Sheskey. For Graveley, Kenosha cops like Sheskey are one of theirs'.

Graveley, a racist who gets bi-partisan political support, loves prosecuting black people, but would never touch a cop, no matter how outrageous the conduct. (See, for example, Harvard Crimson and the absurd case of Chrystul D. Kizer).

When Gravely last ran for election, he fed his bi-partisan support, including from David Beth, to local media. From the Kenosha News:

Graveley, named last week as Wisconsin Prosecutor of the Year by Attorney General Brad Schimel, said he will run as a Democrat. In a bipartisan show of support, County Executive Jim Kreuser, a Democrat, and Sheriff David Beth, a Republican, both strongly endorsed Graveley.

Kreuser and Beth described Graveley as a strong advocate for crime victims and a friend of law enforcement.

Screw over enough black people, and law enforcement will make you prosecutor of the year here.

Then, there's the Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian, a Democratic Party pol, who provides cover and political support for the whole Kenosha mad-dog operation.  

Antaramian will never call for the resignations of the more open racists, Beth and Miskinis. They have a nice tax payer-funded game going and they watch each others' back, as they shoot black people in the back.

Kenosha County Exec Jim Kreuser (D) will do nothing and say nothing to advocate for black folks and human rights.

Black lives don't matter here. Trump wants this news trumpeted, more loud chaos, more graphic death. Democrats want this reality quiet, warehouse blacks away, but do it quiet, make Kenosha look peaceful and friendly.

Don't look for police press conferences for candid anwsers, if Kenosha cops decide to actually conduct them in the face of mounting national ridicule.

Illinois' Bruce Rauner Is the Next Scott Walker Wannabe

Fighting for families in the Land of Lincoln

Unlike Wisconsin governor Scott Walker who refused to campaign on major anti-union and anti-local control initiatives in favor of launching secret attacks, Illinois Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner is openly running on his agenda.

Matthew Blake at In These Times describes Rauner as an openly worker-hostile candidate who said of public workers that they are responsible for sending Illinois into "a long-term death spiral."

Blake quotes Don Rose, a progressive Chicago political consultant: "I think Rauner is horrifically and historically anti-union."

The self-financed Rauner faces opposition for the Republican nomination for governor on March 18, and the winner will face Democratic Governor Pat Quinn.

Reports Rich Miller of the Capitol Fax Blog:

David Yepsen, a long time journalist who is now director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at Southern Illinois University, said what the unions really want is to not be Wisconsin.

 'I think the labor movement in Illinois is genuinely afraid Bruce Rauner will try to do what Scott Walker tried in Wisconsin and they are worried,' Yepsen told Illinois Watchdog.

Iraq Vet Icon Suffering from PTSD Speaks of Suicide

Via the the LA Times - The LA Times photographer Luis Sinco made James Blake Miller an emblem of the Iraq war. The image would change both of their lives and connected them in ways neither imagined.

Here is the link to the photo (and a video recounting the Marine's experience) that made Marine Lance Cpl. Miller -- the "Marlboro Marine" -- famous.

The Bush administration, the American Enterprise Institute and the rest of the chickenhawks swaggering and lying us into war will never understand this man and what he and 100,000s are going through.

###

Shatner Does Sarah Palin

You have to watch this one.

I never knew that Sarah Palin has the heart of Ginsberg, Kerouac and Blake.

Via John Amato from Crooks and Liars: