Daijiworld Media Network - Madison

Madison, Aug 14: A 38-year-old Black man who was fatally shot by police in Madison, Wisconsin, last month will be laid to rest on Friday, amid continued questions over the use of lethal force.

Corey Ruiz was shot dead on July 22 after police officers confronted him following reports that a man was stealing bicycles and checking vehicle doors. According to authorities, Ruiz initially fled and later pulled out a knife during a struggle with four officers, injuring one of them.

Police said officers attempted to use a Taser but were unsuccessful before opening fire on Ruiz.

Video recorded by a bystander and shared widely on social media triggered protests across Madison and renewed scrutiny of police tactics involving people of colour. The footage also raised questions over why lethal force was used after officers deployed Tasers.

Ruiz's funeral will be held at the Fountain of Life Church in Madison. Civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, who represents Ruiz's family, is expected to attend, while civil rights activist Rev Al Sharpton will deliver the eulogy. The service will also be broadcast, according to Sharpton's National Action Network.

No arrests had been made in connection with Ruiz's death as of Friday. The Madison Police Department said the investigation remains with the Wisconsin Department of Justice's Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), after which the findings will be handed over to the district attorney's office to determine whether charges should be filed.

The DCI had not immediately responded to requests for comment.

Ruiz's death has also drawn attention because Madison has previously witnessed high-profile police killings involving Black men. Tony Robinson was fatally shot by a police officer in 2015, about a block and a half from where Ruiz was killed. Paul Heenan was also killed by a police officer in the area in 2012.

Public records show Ruiz had been convicted of 40 misdemeanours and felonies between 2009 and 2025, including robbery by force and strangulation.

Ruiz's former girlfriend, who is the mother of his teenage daughter, said he had struggled with mental health issues but declined to provide further details.

She said Ruiz was killed only a few blocks from where his daughter lives and expressed concern about the impact of his death on the teenager.

"She has to walk past his dying grounds and that memorial every day when she starts school," she said.