Kyle Rittenhouse was not found guilty of the five charges of shooting and killing two people and injuring another during a tension protest in Kenosha last year. This case polarized Americans with some calling Rittenhouse a righteous man while others on the Left have called him a vigilante.
KEY FACTS
After three days of deliberations, jurors found Rittenhouse innocent of the charges of reckless homicide and intentional homicide in the deaths of Anthony Huber, Joseph Rosenbaum, and Joseph Rosenbaum.
He was also not found guilty of attempted first-degree intentional homicide in shooting and injuring Gaige grosskreutz. He was also acquitted of two counts two counts of recklessly endangering safety for firing his gun near a reporter and an unknown man who tried to kick Rittenhouse.
CRUCIAL QUOTE
After the verdict, Rittenhouse was emotional. Mark Richards, Rittenhouse’s defense attorney, told the New York Times that Rittenhouse was relieved and looks forward to moving on with his life. He said that having a jury of 12 people decide him not guilty was a blessing in both practical and symbolic ways.
SURPRISING FACT
Rittenhouse was initially charged with two smaller offenses by the prosecution, but Judge Bruce Schroeder dismissed them. After defense attorneys claimed that the law does not apply to Rittenhouse’s AR-15-style rifle, the judge removed the minor offense of violating a city-imposed curfew.
KEY BACKGROUND
In August 2020, then-17-year-old Rittenhouse visited Kenosha with a rifle and medic kit. He claimed he was protecting a local business from protests over the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man. In a series of chaotic moments, he shot Rosenbaum, Huber, and Grosskreutz, and pleaded not guilty to homicide. Rittenhouse’s attorneys acknowledged during the trial the case isn’t a “whodunit,” but argued their client feared for his life and acted in self-defense. They said Rosenbaum threatened Rittenhouse and tried to take his gun, Huber struck his neck with a skateboard and reached for the rifle, and Grosskreutz pointed a gun. Meanwhile, prosecutors painted Rittenhouse as an inexperienced vigilante and “wannabe soldier” whose presence in Kenosha was unsolicited and unhelpful. They argued he didn’t need to fire repeatedly at Rosenbaum, and say he provoked the subsequent violence by appearing to be an active shooter.
TANGENT
This trial is attracting national attention. While some conservatives support Rittenhouse’s self-defense claims, others on the left see him as a vigilante. The case’s polarizing nature was displayed Friday at Kenosha’s courthouse stairs, where Rittenhouse supporters celebrated their verdict while Blake’s uncle Justin Blake decried it.
CHIEF CRITIC
Huber’s parents told Washington Post that they are “heartbroken” and “angry” about the verdict. Crump, an attorney representing the Blakes, said that the Rittenhouse case had “pulled back the curtain on our justice system’s profound cracks,” and said, “If we were discussing a Black man the conversation and outcome might be dramatically different.”
CONTRA
“I believe justice has been served in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) said in a tweet. “I hope everyone can accept the verdict, remain peaceful, and let the community of Kenosha heal and rebuild.”
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) placed 500 National Guard troops on active duty last week, offering to deploy them to the Kenosha area if local law enforcement asks for help following the verdict.
