Kyle Rittenhouse is not a killer and should be found not guilty of all the charges that are stacked against him.
Rittenhouse is facing five felony charges including first degree intentional homicide, first degree reckless homicide, attempted first degree intentional homicide, and two counts of reckless endangering safety in the first degree.
These charges stem from a shooting in August of 2020 after the police shot Jacob Blake, a resident armed with a knife and with an outstanding warrant for his arrest.
Rittenhouse traveled from his home in Antioch, Illinois to Kenosha, Wisconsin to provide medical attention to injured persons and to protect buildings and property.
The opposite side claims that Rittenhouse crossed state lines with his AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, but evidence presented at trial contradicts that. Rittenhouse’s friend, Dominick Black, testified that he bought the gun that was used in shooting.
Another misconception from this trial is that just because Rittenhouse had his rifle, meant that he went to that area with murder and dangerous intent on his mind.
Rittenhouse had the gun with him for one reason and one reason only, to defend himself and the property he was there to protect.
Rittenhouse opponents also state that his parents should be held responsible for his actions and that his mother drove him across state lines, but in fact, his mother told the Chicago Tribune in November 2020 that she would have tried to stop her son, but did not know where he was or what he was doing.
Dominick Black testified that they brought the rifle in hopes that it might deter others from damaging the business.
Rittenhouse was later called to a Car Source car lot a few blocks from where Rittenhouse’s group set up shop. When responding to that call, Rittenhouse got a fire extinguisher from a gas station and traveled to the second car lot where he encountered Joseph Rosenbaum.
Rosenbaum had been attempting to provoke people all night long. In a video on Twitter, Rosenbaum is seen telling others in the area to “shoot me, n*gga, shoot me!”
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The erratic behavior from Rosenbaum did not end with that video. Rosenbaum had been engaging in riot activities prior to his encounter with Rittenhouse.
The prosecutor, Thomas Binger, tells the jury that Rosenbaum stumbles into town in the middle of civil unrest, but then proceeds to tell us everything that he did that night. “What does he do that night, let me tell you all the awful things he did that night,” Binger said. “He tipped over a porta-potty with no one in it, he swung a chain, he lit a metal garbage system…dumpster on fire, oh and there’s this empty wooden flatbed trailer that they pulled out in the middle of the road and tipped it over to stop some bearcats and lit it on fire.”
The acts that the prosecutor tells about are all acts of rioting, which are not the actions of a man that wanders into the location with no intent.
In addition, during the trial, it is revealed that Rosenbaum had just been released from the hospital and was on anti-depressants and other medication, which could have led to the threats against Rittenhouse and the encounter between the two men where Rosenbaum reached for Rittenhouse’s rifle.
Once Rosenbaum reached for the rifle, Rittenhouse had concerns that Rosenbaum would undoubtedly use the AR-15 to kill not only him, but others around them.
After the shooting of Rosenbaum, Rittenhouse leaves the scene and jogs down the street toward the police line. A mob chases him down shouting that he just shot someone.
He is then struck from behind in the head and falls to the ground. A protester attempts to stomp on his head and misses and that is when Anthony Huber, the second victim, swings his skateboard at Rittenhouse and is shot.
The third victim Gaige Grosskreutz, who is a convicted felony and not allowed to be in possession of a firearm, moves towards Rittenhouse with pistol in hand, and is shot in the arm.
In every turn of this case, Kyle Rittenhouse was simply just trying to defend himself.
The prosecution failed to do what it set out to do and prove that he was provoking a response and that he was not in any physical danger.
Self-defense is not a right that is given when the person attacking you has the same weapon as you. Just because you have a gun, does not mean that a person with no gun is powerless.
In the case of Rosenbaum, it is clear that he was attempting to take Rittenhouse’s gun from him and Rittenhouse felt he was in danger at that point.
Huber and Grosskreutz both had weapons that they attempted to use on Rittenhouse.
Huber attempted to do damage with his skateboard and Grosskreutz attempted to use his handgun.
The jury has no choice but to find Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty on all charges simply because he was defending himself from violent attacks of rioters.