Kenosha unrest shooting

Kenosha unrest shooting

Time	11:49 – 11:59 p.m.
Date	August 25, 2020
Location	Kenosha, Wisconsin, U.S.
Coordinates
Deaths	2
Non-fatal injuries	1
Accused	Kyle H. Rittenhouse
Charges	First-degree reckless homicide First-degree recklessly endangering safety (x2) First-degree intentional homicide Attempted first-degree intentional homicide Possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18 (dismissed) Failure to comply with an emergency order from state or local government (dismissed)
Verdict	Not guilty on all charges

On August 25, 2020, during the unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, after the police shooting of Jacob Blake, Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old from Antioch, Illinois, fatally shot two men and wounded another during three confrontations. All three men shot are white, as is Rittenhouse. Rittenhouse had armed himself with a semi-automatic AR-15 style rifle and said he was in Kenosha to protect a car dealership from being vandalized and to provide medical aid.

Rittenhouse was followed by a group that included Kenosha resident Joseph Rosenbaum, who was unarmed. Racine resident Joshua Ziminski fired a shot into the air nearby, causing Rittenhouse to turn towards Rosenbaum in a parking lot. Rosenbaum then lunged at Rittenhouse and tried to take his rifle, after which Rittenhouse shot him four times, killing him. Rittenhouse then ran down the street while being pursued by a crowd of at least a dozen people. He tripped and fell to the ground after being hit in the head, then fired twice at a man, who jump kicked him, missing both shots. While Rittenhouse was still on the ground, Silver Lake resident Anthony Huber struck him in the shoulder with a skateboard and attempted to take his rifle. Rittenhouse shot him once in the chest, killing him. West Allis resident Gaige Grosskreutz then approached Rittenhouse while pointing a handgun at him. Rittenhouse shot him once in the right arm.

Rittenhouse was charged with two counts of homicide, one count of attempted homicide, two counts of reckless endangerment, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm, and one count of curfew violation. Rittenhouse's trial took place between November 1 and 19, 2021. Judge Bruce Schroeder dismissed the unlawful possession charge and the curfew violation charge during the trial. A unanimous jury found Rittenhouse not guilty of the remaining charges.

Public sentiment of the shootings was polarized and media coverage both polarized and politicized. Multiple right-wing politicians and figures welcomed Rittenhouse's acquittal, stating that the shootings were self-defense, while President Joe Biden called for the jury's verdict to be respected. Multiple left-wing politicians and figures criticized the verdict as a miscarriage of justice, saying that the acquittal was emblematic of racial double standards in the American justice system. Gun control advocates proclaimed fears that the verdict would embolden vigilantism. An Economist/YouGov poll conducted during the trial found that two-thirds of Republicans thought Rittenhouse should be acquitted, while three-quarters of Democrats thought he should be convicted.

Background

Main articles: Shooting of Jacob Blake and Kenosha unrest

On August 23, 2020, Jacob Blake, an African-American man, was shot at seven times from behind, with four of the bullets striking him, by a Kenosha police officer after being tasered. Blake was shot after he opened the door to an SUV and was leaning into the vehicle. As a result of the shooting, he became paralyzed from the waist down. The police shooting was followed by protests as part of the Black Lives Matter movement, which saw a resurgence in the wake of several other high-profile killings by police officers in 2020. The Kenosha protests included rallies, marches, property damage, arson, and clashes with police.

The formation of the Kenosha Guard militia group was announced by former Kenosha alderman Kevin Mathewson in response to the George Floyd protests, which preceded the Kenosha protests. On August 25, Mathewson put out a call on the Kenosha Guard Facebook page for "patriots willing to take up arms and defend" Kenosha. The post received a national and international online response.

Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian and County Sheriff David Beth expressed their disapproval of armed civilians patrolling the streets, while some Wisconsin police officers were seen in a video giving them water and heard saying, "We appreciate you guys, we really do."

Kyle Rittenhouse

Prior to the Kenosha unrest, Rittenhouse had participated in local police cadet programs and expressed support on social media for the Blue Lives Matter movement and law enforcement. He was a resident of Antioch, Illinois, about 20 miles from Kenosha by road.

Sequence of events

Before the shooting

During the day of August 25, peaceful protests in Kenosha were followed by chaos where demonstrators, armed civilians and others faced off against one another and the police at night. After the city suffered building and vehicle damage the preceding day, social media had drawn locals and outsiders, left-wing activists and right-wing militia into the city streets despite an evening curfew imposed on citizens. Some 250 National Guard members were deployed to the city. Militia that included Boogaloo boys and a biker crew carrying "hatchets, ball bats, and firearms" accumulated near two gas stations south of Car Source, an automotive business with three properties (a dealership, a used car lot, and another car lot to the South), which had been badly damaged during the first two nights of unrest. Car Source had suffered $1.5 million in arson damage the previous night. The shootings by Rittenhouse took place shortly before midnight along Sheridan Road in Kenosha after protesters were moved out of Civic Center Park following clashes with law enforcement. Police in armored vehicles drove protesters south away from the courthouse and Civic Center Park.

According to Rittenhouse, he drove to Kenosha on August 24 to stay with his friend Dominick Black, who kept a rifle he purchased for Rittenhouse four months earlier at his Kenosha home. The following day, August 25, Rittenhouse helped clean graffiti off a school. Later, together with Black, he arrived at Car Source. Accounts differ as to whether Rittenhouse and Black's help was requested by Car Source. The dealership owner's sons denied that gunmen had been asked to defend the business, but several witnesses testified that armed individuals had been directly sought out by the business to protect their property.

In the hours leading up to the shooting, Rittenhouse appeared in multiple videos taken by protesters and bystanders and was interviewed twice: first by a livestreamer at the car dealership where he and a number of other armed men had stationed themselves, second by Richie McGinniss, a reporter for The Daily Caller. Rittenhouse was seen talking with police officers, and offering medical aid to those who were injured. When McGinniss asked Rittenhouse why he was at the car dealership, he responded: "So, people are getting injured, and our job is to protect this business. Part of my job is also to help people. If there is somebody hurt, I'm running into harm's way. That's why I have my rifle, because I have to protect myself, obviously. I also have my med kit." At some point, Rittenhouse left the dealership, was prevented by police from returning, and then headed to the Car Source lot farthest to the South.

First confrontation

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Locations of shootings († denotes fatalities) Shooting of Joseph Rosenbaum † Shooting of Anthony Huber † and Gaige Grosskreutz

Part of the first confrontation between Rittenhouse and Rosenbaum was witnessed by McGinniss to whom it seemed that Rosenbaum and other protesters were moving toward Rittenhouse, who was trying to evade them; Rosenbaum tried to engage Rittenhouse who avoided this by sidestepping and running away. Rittenhouse testified at trial that Rosenbaum had threatened to kill him. FBI infrared footage taken from an overhead airplane captured the shooting of Rosenbaum and the events immediately preceding it.

Video footage showed Rittenhouse being pursued across a parking lot by a group of people. Rosenbaum threw a plastic bag containing socks, underwear, and deodorant at Rittenhouse. A bystander named Joshua Ziminski fired a shot into the air, and then Rittenhouse stopped running and turned towards the sound of the shot. Rittenhouse testified at trial that prior to being chased by Rosenbaum, he heard another man tell Rosenbaum to "get him and kill him," but also knew that Rosenbaum was unarmed. Rittenhouse testified that he aimed his gun at Rosenbaum to deter him from pursuing him further.

Witnesses for the prosecution testified at trial that Rosenbaum engaged Rittenhouse and tried to take his rifle from him. At 11:48 pm, Rittenhouse then fired four rounds at Rosenbaum, hitting his groin, back and left hand. The bullets perforated Rosenbaum's heart, aorta, pulmonary artery and right lung, fractured his pelvis, and caused minor wounds to his left thigh and forehead. McGinniss began administering first aid to Rosenbaum. Rittenhouse stood over McGinniss for half of a minute before fleeing, and was heard saying "I just killed somebody" on his cell phone to his friend Dominick Black as he sprinted out of the parking lot where he had shot Rosenbaum. Rosenbaum died shortly afterwards. Rittenhouse then ran down the street towards police vehicles pursued by a few protesters.

Second confrontation

Gaige Grosskreutz testified that he was filming the protest as a legal observer for the American Civil Liberties Union on a Facebook livestream. Shortly before midnight he said he heard gunshots to the south and observed Rittenhouse running in his direction on Sheridan Road. Grosskreutz said he ran alongside Rittenhouse and asked "Hey, what are you doing?" and "You shoot somebody?"

Protesters were heard on two different videos yelling "Beat him up!", "Hey he shot him!" and "Get him! Get that dude!" One individual struck Rittenhouse, knocking off his cap, shortly after which Rittenhouse tripped and fell to the ground. Others shouted "What'd he do?", "Just shot someone!" and "Get his ass!" While he was on the ground, one of the men in pursuit jump kicked Rittenhouse who fired twice but missed the man.

File:60th and Sheridan Kenosha WI.jpg

A roadblock pays tribute to Anthony Huber on the road on which he was killed

Another protester, Anthony Huber, made contact with Rittenhouse's left shoulder with a skateboard as the pair struggled for control of the gun. As Huber was pulling on the rifle, Rittenhouse fired once, hitting Huber in the chest, perforating his heart and right lung, causing his rapid death.

Grosskreutz testified he believed Rittenhouse was an active shooter. Grosskreutz had an expired concealed carry permit for a handgun and was carrying a Glock pistol. He approached Rittenhouse, who was on the ground, but stopped and put his hands up after Huber was shot. Grosskreutz then pointed his handgun and advanced on Rittenhouse, who shot Grosskreutz in the arm, severing most of his right biceps muscle.

At least 16 gunshots from other sources were heard on video during the time that Rittenhouse was on the ground.

After the shooting

Rittenhouse got back to his feet and walked towards police with his hands up and the rifle strapped across his chest. Several police officers testified during the trial that they were responding to an active shooter incident and did not recognize that Rittenhouse was the shooter. He was repeatedly told to get out of the road, and when he continued to advance, one officer attempted to pepper-spray him. Several witnesses and protesters had shouted for him to be arrested. When asked at a press conference why Rittenhouse was not stopped, Kenosha Sheriff David Beth said, "In situations that are high-stress, you have such incredible tunnel vision" and implied officers may not have realized he had been involved in the shooting. Likewise, Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis said that "there was nothing to suggest this individual was involved in any criminal behavior" due to the fact that someone walking towards the police with their hands up was "no longer abnormal" in the wake of the protests.

Video clips from Kenosha immediately went viral after the shooting. Facebook, criticized for allowing militia groups to post solicitations for armed attendees and for failing to respond to several hundred complaints, removed the Kenosha Guard's post and classified the event as a mass shooting.

Legal proceedings

Charges

Rittenhouse turned himself in to police in his home town of Antioch, Illinois about an hour after the shootings in Kenosha. Under Wisconsin state law, he was charged as an adult. The August 27, 2020 complaint listed six charges:

• first-degree reckless homicide against Joseph Rosenbaum, punishable by imprisonment of up to 65 years
• first-degree recklessly endangering safety against Richard McGinnis (a reporter who interviewed Rittenhouse before the shooting), punishable by imprisonment for up to 17 years
• first-degree intentional homicide against Anthony Huber, punishable by a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole
• attempted first-degree intentional homicide against Gaige Grosskreutz, punishable by imprisonment of up to 65 years
• first-degree recklessly endangering safety against the man who kicked Rittenhouse, punishable by imprisonment of up to 17 years
• possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18

Each felony charge had a "use of a dangerous weapon" modifier, which invokes a Wisconsin law that prescribes an addition of no more than five years of imprisonment for each modified charge. In a jailhouse interview with The Washington Post, Rittenhouse said he purchased the AR-15 rifle, which was identified as a Smith & Wesson M&P15 chambered in .223. On August 29, the legal team for Rittenhouse released a statement asserting that Rittenhouse acted in self-defense and was wrongly arrested. On September 22, Rittenhouse's defense team released an 11-minute narrated video of the night, consisting of quick cuts between various angles. The video contends that several shots were fired before and after the shooting of Rosenbaum, and that Rosenbaum may have started chasing Rittenhouse because he mistook him for a man with whom he had a dispute earlier. Rittenhouse pleaded not guilty to all charges on January 5, 2021.

Detention and release

Rittenhouse was held in a juvenile facility in Illinois until he was extradited to Wisconsin on October 30, 2020. He was released from detention on November 20, after posting $2 million bail. On January 22, 2021, the conditions of Rittenhouse's release were changed so that he could not consume alcohol, have access to firearms, or associate with persons or groups known to be a threat to others based on race or religion. These changes were made after Rittenhouse was seen on January 5 at a bar with his mother in Mt. Pleasant, Wisconsin, drinking beers and posing for pictures alongside five men who sang "Proud of Your Boy", a song used by members of the far-right Proud Boys political organization. In one photo with two of them, Rittenhouse flashed an "OK" sign, a hand gesture frequently used by white supremacists. On February 11, judge Schroeder denied a request by prosecutors for a $200,000 increase in Rittenhouse's bond, after Rittenhouse failed to file an address change within 48 hours of moving, stating that people out on bail often fail to update their address. Rittenhouse's attorney said that Rittenhouse had been staying at an undisclosed address out of concern for his safety.

Pretrial rulings

At a hearing on September 17, 2021, judge Bruce Schroeder denied prosecutors' requests to admit as evidence Rittenhouse's outing with Proud Boys members and a previous fight he was involved in, finding that the incidents were too dissimilar to be used as evidence of Rittenhouse's mindset during the shootings. On October 25, Schroeder defined what testimony would or would not be admissible by both the defense and the prosecution. Schroeder ordered that the men shot by Rittenhouse cannot be referred to as victims but can be described as arsonists or looters if the defense is able to establish evidence they were engaged in those activities that night. Legal experts weighed in on the decision saying that the term "victim" can appear prejudicial in a court of law, heavily influencing a jury by presupposing which people have been wronged.

Trial

Trial arguments and testimonies took place between November 2 and 15, 2021, in Kenosha County Courthouse. After opening arguments, jurors were shown multiple video recordings of the events. Video footage recorded shortly before the shooting showed Rosenbaum confronting the armed men, after one of them pointed a gun at him, and shouting "Shoot me, nigger!", before several protesters rushed to calm him down. Two witnesses testified having seen Rosenbaum behave violently and yell before approaching Rittenhouse and trying to take the teenager's rifle. A former marine testified that Rosenbaum had taunted him and other armed men before the shootings; he also said that he did not consider Rosenbaum a threat. A witness who said he had spoken with Rittenhouse after the shooting testified that Rittenhouse was nervous, pale, and sweating, repeatedly saying "I just shot someone." Three more witnesses, including a Kenosha police officer, testified regarding the claim that Rittenhouse was acting in self-defense. The prosecution questioned that Rittenhouse would feel threatened while holding a rifle, and described him as an armed threat.

Grosskreutz testified that when he approached Rittenhouse and put his hands in the air, he believed he saw Rittenhouse re-rack his rifle, which to Grosskreutz "meant that [Rittenhouse] pulled the trigger while [Grosskreutz'] hands were in the air, but the gun didn't fire", and that Rittenhouse "wasn't accepting [Grosskreutz'] surrender"; he then decided to "close the distance" to Rittenhouse, to employ "non-lethal" methods of either "wrestling the gun" or "detaining" Rittenhouse. He further testified that he was "trying to preserve [his] own life" but "was never trying to kill" Rittenhouse, and that he moved closer to Rittenhouse, unintentionally pointing his handgun at Rittenhouse, after which Rittenhouse shot him.

Rittenhouse testified that Rosenbaum had twice threatened to kill him, and had ambushed him before the fatal shooting. Prosecution witness Ryan Balch, a military veteran who also carried an AR-style rifle that night, recalled Rosenbaum shouting "If I catch any of you guys alone tonight I'm going to fucking kill you!" Rittenhouse broke down on recounting those events, and the judge ordered a recess. Afterward, Rittenhouse said that Rosenbaum charged at him, putting his hand on Rittenhouse's gun barrel. In cross-examination, Rittenhouse acknowledged using deadly force to stop the attack on him, while also saying that killing was not his intent.

After alleging that Rittenhouse had refrained from commenting on the case until the trial in order to fit his testimony to others' accounts, prosecutor Thomas Binger was admonished by judge Schroeder, who accused him of a "grave constitutional violation" of the right to silence guaranteed by the Fifth Amendment.

After the prosecution rested its case, the judge dismissed a charge of curfew violation against Rittenhouse, citing a lack of evidence offered by the prosecution. Later, the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm was also dismissed, based on the defense argument that the Wisconsin law was ambiguous and could be interpreted to only restrict minors from carrying rifles if they are short-barreled. The barrel of Rittenhouse's rifle was longer than 16 inches, the minimum barrel length allowed under state law.

The jury began deliberating on November 16. During their deliberations, the defense made a motion for a mistrial with prejudice, arguing that there was "prosecutorial overreaching" and that the state acted "in bad faith." They then requested a mistrial without prejudice due to a dispute over drone video used in the trial. The defense attorneys stated that the version provided to them by the prosecution was in a lower resolution and different aspect ratio than the version presented by the state, in violation of rules of evidence and the right of defendants to confront their accuser.

On November 18, Schroeder banned MSNBC and anybody affiliated with the cable network from the courthouse for the duration of the trial. The judge explained that on the previous night, Kenosha police noticed a car following the jury bus, and stopped it when it ran a red light. Schroeder identified the driver as "James J. Morrison, who claimed he was a producer with NBC News, employed by MSNBC" and that Morrison said his boss, Irene Byon, told him to follow the jury. Police took Morrison into custody on suspicion of photographing jurors, but after they found no pictures of jurors, he was "issued traffic related citations" and released. In a statement, NBC News referred to the vehicle driver as a "freelancer" and denied that he intended to photograph jurors or contact them during deliberations.

On November 19, the jury reached a unanimous verdict after more than 25 hours of deliberations spanning four days. Rittenhouse was found not guilty on all counts.

Other litigation

In November 2020, 19-year-old Dominick Black was charged with two felony counts of intentionally selling a rifle to Rittenhouse, then a minor. Bond was set at $2,500 (equivalent to $2,500 in 2021). For firing a shot in the air just before Rittenhouse shot Rosenbaum, Joshua Ziminski was charged with disorderly conduct using a dangerous weapon and arson.

A lawsuit was filed in September by plaintiffs including the partner of Anthony Huber, seeking damages from Rittenhouse, Facebook, the far-right group Boogaloo Bois, and the Kenosha Guard militia and its commander. The suit alleged negligence on the part of Facebook in allowing the Kenosha Guard to call for militia members on its platform, and alleged that the defendants had participated in a conspiracy to violate their civil rights. The suit was withdrawn by the plaintiffs without comment and dismissed with prejudice in the last week of January 2021. On January 4, Huber's parents and Gaige Grosskreutz each filed $10 million claim notices, against both the city and county, alleging negligence due to inaction in protecting their rights. On August 17, Huber's parents filed a lawsuit against the Kenosha Police Department and Kenosha County Sheriff's Department, claiming that law enforcement allowed Rittenhouse to harm people peacefully protesting against the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

Responses

File:A Kyle Rittenhouse supporter in Kenosha Wisconsin.jpg

A man holds a "Free Kyle" sign near Bradford High School during President Donald Trump's visit on September 1, 2020.

Public sentiment regarding the shootings was polarized. Coverage was both critical and supportive of Rittenhouse's actions, and used terms such as "vigilante" and "terrorist", but also "volunteer" and "maintaining peace" to describe him.

Writing for the American Bar Association Journal, Matt Reynolds observed that the "scenes in Wisconsin illustrated a tension between the Second Amendment right to bear arms and the First Amendment right to peacefully protest."

An Economist/YouGov poll conducted with 1,500 adult Americans between November 14 - 16 found that Black Americans overwhelmingly thought Rittenhouse should be found guilty of homicide while White Americans were closely divided.

Criticism of the police

Many commentators were critical of the fact that Rittenhouse was not immediately arrested despite witnesses shouting that he was the shooter. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) called for the resignations of Kenosha Police Chief Daniel Miskinis and of Kenosha Sheriff David Beth. The ACLU statement argued that Beth's deputies fraternized with "white supremacist counter-protesters" during the day of the shooting and did not arrest the shooter. The statement attacked Miskinis for blaming those shot in the course of the shooting when he said that the violence was the result of the "persons" involved violating curfew. The Kenosha mayor stated that he would not ask the sheriff or police chief to resign.

Responses by authorities

NBC News obtained a Department of Homeland Security internal document and reported that it directed federal law enforcement officials to make specific statements regarding Rittenhouse, such as noting that he "took his rifle to the scene of the rioting to help defend small business owners" and that "[Rittenhouse] is innocent until proven guilty and deserves a fair trial based on all the facts, not just the ones that support a certain narrative."

Responses by Internet companies

Facebook, Twitter and GoFundMe removed content supporting Rittenhouse, citing rules banning praise or support of mass shooters or glorification of violence. Facebook further disabled searches for "Kyle Rittenhouse" on its website, with a spokesperson saying "We've designated this shooting as a mass murder and have removed the shooter's accounts from Facebook and Instagram". The day Rittenhouse was acquitted, GoFundMe tweeted out a response to their ban of the Rittenhouse defense fund stating "GoFundMe's Terms of Service prohibit raising money for the legal defense of an alleged violent crime. In light of the Kyle Rittenhouse trial, we want to clarify when and why we have removed certain fundraisers in the past."

Politicians and pundits

Republican

Six days after the shooting, then-President Donald Trump said, "He was trying to get away from them, I guess, it looks like," noting the incident was under investigation. "I guess he was in very big trouble. He probably would have been killed." Trump later went on to retweet a statement by Tim Pool describing how the case of Rittenhouse had convinced Pool to vote for Trump, and liked another one with similar content. In public comments, Trump showed support for the idea that Rittenhouse was acting in self-defense. The former President later described the trial as a "witch hunt from the Radical Left", and praised the not guilty verdict from the jury.

Other conservative politicians have also lauded its decision, and Rittenhouse's figure was described as being a cause célèbre for the political right. Ron Johnson, the Republican Senator from Wisconsin, said that "justice has been served" with the verdict and called to acknowledge the ruling. Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Chris Christie, former governor of New Jersey, also praised the ruling, with the latter saying that the verdict "renews our faith in the jury system". Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said that Rittenhouse was "more of a man than the pundits and the blue checkmarks [...] that are attacking" him, and added that people criticizing Rittenhouse were defending "a monster that sexually assaults children", referring to Rosenbaum's conviction for sexual abuse of his children. Three US Representatives, Paul Gosar from Arizona, Madison Cawthorn from North Carolina and Matt Gaetz from Florida, have proposed internships in their offices to Rittenhouse; with Cawthorn stating after the not guilty verdict: "You have a right to defend yourself, so be armed, be dangerous and be moral". In November 2020, shortly after Rittenhouse was released on bail, Florida state representative Anthony Sabatini tweeted "KYLE RITTENHOUSE FOR CONGRESS". Sabatini was widely criticized by political opponents for the tweet with some urging him to resign.

Several commentators on the right also defended his actions. Fox News host Tucker Carlson blamed authorities for failing to stop looting and arson, and added, "How shocked are we that 17-year-olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would?" His comments were met with backlash on social media. Conservative pundit Ann Coulter and retired baseball player Aubrey Huff also praised Rittenhouse. The right has also donated money to defend the teenager. For example, the Christian crowdfunding website GiveSendGo raised over half a million dollars to help pay Rittenhouse's legal fees.

Far-right activists celebrated the acquittal. A Florida state representative proposed to declare a federal holiday on November 19, commemorating Kyle's acquittal, while an Arizona state senator called for statues to be erected in his honor. A surge of anti-Semitic messaging, connected with a perception that Jews were somehow influencing the coverage, was also noted among far-right groups. The far-right Proud Boys's attorney has appropriated the defense of Rittenhouse in relation to the 2021 Capitol attack, claiming that those accused were defending the protesters against "violent attacks from Antifa", similar to what Rittenhouse had done earlier. The FBI said that there is no evidence for Antifa's involvement in the attack.

A minority of conservatives were critical of their Republican colleagues' messaging. Rittenhouse's attorney has spoken against what he saw as Republican politicians attempting to capitalize on his client's story. David French, a conservative political commentator, while sympathetic to the notion that the ruling would not be a miscarriage of justice, also opposed what he described as "making a foolish man a hero".

Democratic

On September 30, 2020, a month after the shootings, then-presidential candidate Joe Biden shared a post on Twitter criticizing Donald Trump for not condemning white supremacists that included a video that had an image of Rittenhouse. In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Rittenhouse's mother said that Biden wrongly implied her son was a white supremacist. When Biden was asked about the verdict on November 19, 2021, he stated "I stand by what the jury has concluded. The jury system works and we have to abide by it." Later that day, the White House issued a written statement from Biden saying "While the verdict in Kenosha will leave many Americans feeling angry and concerned, myself included, we must acknowledge that the jury has spoken... I know that we're not going to heal our country's wounds overnight, but I remain steadfast in my commitment to do everything in my power to ensure that every American is treated equally, with fairness and dignity, under the law." Conservative and right-wing politicians called upon Biden to apologize for his election campaign remarks.

Wisconsin governor Tony Evers said in a statement that "No verdict will be able to bring back the lives of Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum, or heal Gaige Grosskreutz's injuries, just as no verdict can heal the wounds or trauma experienced by Jacob Blake and his family. No ruling today changes our reality in Wisconsin that we have work to do toward equity, accountability, and justice that communities across our state are demanding and deserve."

Other politicians were more critical in their assessment of the verdict. Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker said, "carrying a loaded gun into a community 20 miles from your home and shooting unarmed citizens is fundamentally wrong. It’s a tragedy that the court could not acknowledge that basic fact." Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot acknowledged the verdict and added that "no one should ever take the law into their own hands, or attempt to make themselves the judge, jury, and executioner. What Kyle Rittenhouse did was reckless, dangerous, and showed an utter disregard for human life."

Some liberal and progressive members of Congress were even harsher in their criticism of Rittenhouse and of the not guilty verdict. Wisconsin's Democratic Senator, Tammy Baldwin, was outraged at the fact that a person could be left with no responsibility for killing two people. New York's Representative Jerry Nadler, who also serves as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said the ruling was a miscarriage of justice and that the federal Department of Justice (DOJ) should intervene. Several members of the US House of Representatives have set even stronger judgments, with Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts calling Rittenhouse a "domestic terrorist", and Michigan House Representative Rashida Tlaib stating that the American justice system "protects white supremacy". They, along with Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, Derrick Johnson, NAACP's CEO and president, Margaret Huang of the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), and Reverend Al Sharpton, have also derided the verdict as what they saw as the manifestation of double standards in assessing the culpability of the accused based on race. Gun control advocates and some Democrat politicians, including California Governor Gavin Newsom, have expressed fear that such a verdict could encourage others to engage in vigilantism and copycat Rittenhouse's behavior.

Protests of the verdict

People protested the verdict in multiple large cities in the United States. In Portland, 200 protestors gathered in the downtown area. Authorities declared a riot after protestors broke windows and doors and also attacked police. In Chicago, 1,000 protestors marched against the verdict. In Raleigh, North Carolina, people protested in front of the state Capitol Building. Peaceful protests occurred in Brooklyn, New York, where protestors blocked lanes of the Brooklyn Bridge. In Middle Village, Queens, New York, protestors damaged vehicles and ripped up flags. Five people were arrested. In California, protesters assembled in Oakland, San Diego and Los Angeles.

Further reading

• Bock Clark, Doug and Costello, Jacqueline (April 2021). "American Battlefield: 72 Hours in Kenosha". GQ.

External links

• A visual timeline of violence in Kenosha after police shooting of Jacob Blake. USA Today (August 31, 2020).
• A Fatal Night in Kenosha: How the Rittenhouse Shootings Unfolded (video). Visual investigation by The New York Times, via YouTube
• How Kyle Rittenhouse and Joseph Rosenbaum's paths crossed in a fatal encounter (video). Visual investigation by The Washington Post, via YouTube