Tony Robinson shooting: Officer who fatally shot Wisconsin teenager wants to return to police force

(AP Images)

Matt Kenny, the Wisconsin cop who fatally shot Tony Robinson, a 19-year-old unarmed black man, is ready to return to the police force.

Jim Palmer, Mr Kenny's attorney, told the Wisconsin State Journal that his client is dedicated to serving his community, pointing to his 12-years in the force and his time spent in the US Coast Guard as a lifeguard.

"At his core, he is someone who is extraordinarily dedicated to helping people," he said. "He feels a very deep and genuine connection to this community, and he wants to get back to serving it."

Last week, Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne dismissed pursuing charges against Mr Kenny saying that the officer engaged in a lawful use of force which took the life of Mr Robinson on 6 March. He must now face an internal department investigation of the shooting shooting gained national attention after protests broke out seeking charges against the officer and a racial bias in the police force.

Police Chief Mike Koval told WKOW-TV that he is currently considering alternatives to Mr Kenny's former role as a patrol officer.

"Clearly, he's certainly probably a household name or figure right now in our community. I worry about his safety,” he said. "I worry about those officers who go to back him up. And of course I worry about the community perceptions about what's gone on here."

Mr Koval also said that the department has already received several death threats against the officer as well as Mr Robinson's family.

“So I think we have to create some time and some space and we have to look at some other alternatives above and beyond what he’s going to have as a patrol officer,” Koval told the TV station. “So we’re going to take those in a very studied and calculated way before we introduce him back.”