Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17 year old that shot and killed two rioters and wounded one more during the Kenosha riots, was acquitted on all counts today after a lengthy jury trial. Fox News. Rittenhouse had been charged with two counts of 1st degree intentional homicide, one count of 1st degree reckless homicide and two counts of 1st degree reckless endangerment. Two weapons charges were dropped by the judge after it was clear that he hadn't met the conditions of the charges. Rittenhouse showed great emotion during the reading of the verdict and briefly collapsed. The judge praised the jury in the case and reminded them that they were under no obligation to speak about the case.
WATCH AGAIN: KYLE RITTENHOUSE LEARNS HIS FATE AT KENOSHA TRIAL pic.twitter.com/XgGnuzypzf
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 19, 2021
My Comment:
I have been waiting to write this post all week. I had figured that the jury would be done deliberating in minutes, not days and it is amazing that the deliberations lasted as long as they did. From what I understand there was a couple of holdouts and I guess they got worn down over time. Thankfully this case is finally over.
It's very obvious by looking at the reactions to this case who was actually paying attention to this story and who was not. I saw a lot of bad takes on Twitter and Facebook about this case that had absolutely no knowledge of either the simple facts of the case or the laws in my great state of Wisconsin. It has been obvious for a long time that Kyle Rittenhouse did nothing wrong under the laws of Wisconsin.
Video was probably the deciding factor of the case. The video showed very clearly that Rittenhouse was attacked and only opened fire after trying to retreat. It showed Joseph Rosenbaum acting like a terrible person, picking fights, saying the N-word and generally being a menace. It showed Rosenbaum chasing Rittenhouse and Rittenhouse only shooting when he was cornered and could no longer flee. It also showed Anthony Huber beating Rittenhouse with a skateboard after he fell and Gaige Grosskreutz pulling a hand gun before getting shot. With that video being out there and the jury apparently understanding Wisconsin's use of force law, no other outcome was really possible.
There was fear though that the jury would pull a reverse jury nullification due to intimidation. Nothing was done to keep Antifa and BLM away from the jurors and MSNBC went so far as to send a reporter to tail the bus the jurors were on. Many people felt that the holdouts were doing so because they were afraid of retaliation. So far it's unclear if that was the hold up or if the jury was stuck on some aspect of the case.
I honestly don't think we will see any riots over this verdict. For one thing it's November in Wisconsin. Rioting is not a winter activity and with temps below freezing I can't see people staying in the streets. If it was summer I wouldn't be so sure but right now I doubt it will happen. Plus I don't see the Democrats gaining anything from allowing and encouraging riots this far out from a Presidential election.
I do think that the Rittenhouse case did essentially stop the 2020 summer of love that destroyed so many of our inner cities. Kenosha was the last hurrah of 2020's violence (other than Portland where it continues to this day) and I think Rittenhouse was the cause of that. His actions, fully justified by self defense, showed Antifa and BLM that there actually were going to be consequences for their actions if they continued doing what they were doing. Plus I think the Democrats finally caught on that people were sick and tired of the rioting after the outpouring of support for Rittenhouse. They finally and quietly pulled the plug on both groups since then.
What was clear though is that both the traditional and tech media really screwed this case up. They disparaged Rittenhouse from the start, falsely calling him a White Supremacist and lying about the facts of the case. Big tech was hardly any better, banning support of Rittenhouse even though it was pretty clear that he was innocent. I myself caught a 12 hour ban on Twitter for saying that Rittenhouse was a hero and the people he shot were communist scum, a statement I continue to stand by. All of these people should be brought to heel and I hope that Rittenhouse sues the pants off of them.
I do fear that Rittenhouse may not be out of the woods yet. The federal government could potentially charge him as well, though for what I have no idea. The case was open and shut self defense and I can't think of a federal crime he committed but the FBI also has no soul and neither does the current occupants of the executive branch. If that happens expect a major backlash against the federal government, beyond what is already happening.
As for Rittenhouse I do hope that he keeps a low profile from now on. I don't want him to turn out like George Zimmerman. Zimmerman was correctly acquitted as well, but his life turned into a joke after that and he largely embarrassed himself with his behavior afterwards. I don't want to see Rittenhouse go down the same path and I want the kid to have a good life.
I do think that the Rittenhouse case does have some good lessons for people. I don't have a problem with him going to Kenosha to try and help people but I do think he made some major tactical mistakes. The most obvious is that he didn't have anyone to watch his back. Though Joseph Rosenbaum was totally unhinged and possibly suicidal he probably would not have picked this fight if Rittenhouse was backed up by a few of his buddies. Going it alone is why Rittenhouse got into this mess and if there is a lesson learned here it's make sure you have someone watching your back.
I also have to say that I find the people on the left praising Rosenbaum, Huber and Grosskreutz baffling at best and disgusting at worse. All three had criminal records and none of them acted with any honor that night. Rosenbaum was by far the worst being a serial abuser and rapist of children and also somehow gets a free pass at using the N-word. And Grosskreutz had his life spared by Rittenhouse, who had every right to shoot him when he came up on him with a gun while he was on the ground and incapable of fleeing. He then raised his hands and when Rittenhouse lowered hid gun, Grosskreutz tried to murder him. How he escaped with out an attempted murder charge is beyond me. None of these people were in anyway good and the left trying to say otherwise is a joke.
This was a big win for the idea of self defense. If there had been a conviction in this case the right to self defense would simply no longer exist in America. The fact that charges were even filed was extremely disturbing. But it seems clear that, in Wisconsin at least, you still have a right to use deadly force if your life is threatened. As a citizen of the state I am relieved.
I do think there should be consequences for the prosecutors in this case. Their actions were totally out of control and I think the judge would have been justified in dismissing the case with prejudice. I think the only reason he didn't is because he would have been crucified in the media by doing so, but their actions were bad enough that it would have been worth it in my mind.
Indeed, the prosecutors tried to use Rittenhouse's silence against him, a huge violation. They also ignored the judges orders and even went so far as to screw the defense out of exonerating video that showed Rittenhouse never raised his rifle until he was attacked. If the left was smart they would actually work with Republicans who are outraged with this case to get some kind of prosecutorial reform passed, but that simply won't happen.
Even ignoring the flat out unethical way the prosecution was handled, I have to say that the prosecutors should just be fired based on performance issues. Their own witnesses hurt their cases greatly and it wasn't a good look for them to constantly badger witnesses. They came off as bullying and extremely unlikeable.
As for the defense, a lot has been made of them not objecting enough but it seems to have worked out. A lot of people questioned putting Rittenhouse on the stand but I think it was a gamble that pulled off. Having him explain in his own words what happened that night probably helped him with the jury and absolutely did with the court of public opinion. Not everyone agrees with that though and I can easily see how it could have backfired spectacularly. But in a high profile case like this it's important to get your defendants story out there.
Finally, I have to say that I personally was disgusted that this case was every filed in the first place. It caused me to lose whatever little faith I had in the system, and even Rittenhouse's acquittal doesn't change that. It was clear from the start that he was not guilty of the charges he was brought up on and that they were only filed because he was inconvenient to the powers that be. They wanted to punish him, not because he did anything wrong, but because he screwed up their plans to try and win the 2020 election. They should face consequences for that...
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