Jacob Blake’s Father Reports His Paralyzed Son Is Handcuffed to His Hospital Bed, But Police Refuse to Say Why

Photo credit: Kamil Krzaczynski, AFP via Getty Images.

Jacob Blake Sr. reported that his son, still recovering from being shot seven times in the back by a police officer last week, is handcuffed to his bed in the hospital, although no one in law enforcement will explain why or if he has been charged with a crime.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the father of 29-year-old Jacob Blake Jr. noticed that when he visited his son on Wednesday, he was handcuffed to the bed rail to apparently prevent him from leaving the hospital. However, Blake Jr. is currently unable to walk because he is paralyzed from the waist down because of gunshot injuries near his spine.

“I hate it that he was lying in that bed with the handcuff onto the bed,” Blake Sr. said, per the Sun-Times. “He can’t go anywhere. Why do you have him cuffed to the bed?”

When Blake Sr. asked his son if he’d had been arrested, Blake Jr. said he had not as far as he knew. At the time of the shooting, Blake Jr. reportedly had active arrest warrants for charges of third-degree sexual assault, trespassing, and disorderly conduct. The father said he has not been contacted by anyone from the Kenosha police department, although he did report that he has spoken with Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers.

When reached for comment, the Kenosha police department, Kenosha Country district attorney’s office, and the Wisconsin Department of Justice all refused to say what, if any, charges had been brought against Blake Jr.