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Northwoods Sheriffs Send Deputies To Help With Kenosha Protests

Deputies from several Northwoods sheriff’s offices are in Kenosha, helping manage protests following the shooting of Jacob Blake.

Blake, a Black man, was shot seven times in the back by Kenosha police officers. Protests, both peaceful and violent, have followed.

Oneida County Sheriff Grady Hartman sent a team of his deputies to Kenosha on Monday, responding to a request from Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth.

“The first night was real ugly. Very busy. A lot of anger directed directly towards them,” Hartman said. “We sent ten deputies down. It was our crowd control team. We call it our ‘field force team.’ They’re specially trained in handling unruly crowds.”

Kenosha County put out a statewide request for more help as some peaceful protests turned into violent ones.

Vilas County sent six deputies to Kenosha. They’ll be replaced by eight more on Friday.

“The call came out for help, and we have always taken on the stance that no sheriff stands alone,” said Vilas County Chief Deputy Patrick Schmidt. “We utilized it back in the 80s when we had the spearfishing issues.”

Lincoln County sent two deputies to help with protests in Madison.

Forest County wasn’t able to send help south, but offered to help local counties by backfilling for deputies who left.

Hartman said such aid is to be expected.

“When sheriffs ask other sheriffs for help, it’s kind of a brotherhood, a sisterhood,” he said. “When they ask for help, it’s usually because they’re in desperate need for help and we jump in and help.”

“Wisconsin’s always had a very long history of sheriffs helping out each other, whether it’s for rallies, festivals, or anything,” Schmidt added. “When a sheriff puts out the call that they need help, usually, the rest of the state responds.”

Two people have been killed as a result of the protests, and Jacob Blake may be paralyzed for life.

Ben worked as the Special Topics Correspondent at WXPR from September 2019 until November 2021. He now contributes occasionally to WXPR. During his full-time employment, his main focus was reporting on environment and natural resources issues in northern Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula as part of The Stream, a weekly series.
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