KENOSHA, Wis. — Closing arguments wrapped up on Monday and the jury will begin deliberations Tuesday after two weeks of testimony in the Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial.
Rittenhouse provoked bloodshed on the streets of Kenosha by bringing a semi-automatic rifle to a protest and menacing others, and when the shooting stopped, he walked off like a “hero in a Western,” a prosecutor said in closing arguments.
But Rittenhouse’s attorney countered that the shooting started after the young man was ambushed by a “crazy person” that night and became afraid his gun was going to be wrested away and used to kill him. Attorney Mark Richards began his closing arguments by criticizing prosecutors’ contention that Rittenhouse provoked the bloodshed on the streets of Kenosha by bringing a semi-automatic rifle to a protest and menacing others.
Both sides wanted to move closing arguments and deliberations to Monday. The judge allowed it and limited both sides to a total of 2.5 hours for closing arguments.
Rittenhouse, from Illinois, is charged with killing two people and wounding a third during a police brutality protest in Kenosha, Wis., last year.
Rittenhouse faces several counts, including first-degree reckless homicide, first-degree intentional homicide and attempted first-degree intentional homicide, in the Aug. 25, 2020, deaths of Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and wounding of Gaige Grosskreutz. Rittenhouse, who was 17 at the time, could face life in prison if convicted on the first-degree homicide charge.
He traveled across the state border from his home in Illinois to Kenosha, during protests in the city following the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by a white police officer. The case is polarizing across the political spectrum, with some seeing him as a vigilante, and others portraying him as a patriot who acted in self-defense.
Gov. Tony Evers activated about 500 National Guard to be on standby ahead of the verdict, should Kenosha authorities request their assistance.
Follow along for updates:
