Kyle Rittenhouse is a community lifeguard who was working in Kenosha the day of the shooting.
This simple fact destroys the narrative being peddled by the mainstream media that he had “crossed state lines” to harm the rioters.
In a statement by Rittenhouse’s legal team at Pierce Bainbridge, provided to the Gateway Pundit, “after Kyle finished his work that day as a community lifeguard in Kenosha, he wanted to help clean up some of the damage, so he and a friend went to the local public high school to remove graffiti by rioters.”
Additionally, the weapon Rittenhouse was using to protect himself and others never crossed state lines.
“Later in the day, they received information about a call for help from a local business owner, whose downtown Kenosha auto dealership was largely destroyed by mob violence,” the statement continues. “Business owner needed help to protect what he had left of his life’s work, including two nearby mechanic’s shops. Kyle and a friend armed themselves with rifles due to the deadly violence gripping Kenosha and many other American cities, and headed to the business premises. The weapons were in Wisconsin and never crossed state lines.”
When Rittenhouse arrived at the mechanics shop, he and others stood guard to prevent further destruction. Later that night, long after the 8 p.m. curfew had passed, the police began to disperse a group of rioters. His lawyer, John M. Pierce, explains that while dispersing the mob, they maneuvered a mass of individuals down the street towards the auto shops. Rittenhouse and the others were threatened and taunted, but he did not react. “His intent was not to incite violence, but simply to deter property damage and use his training to provide first aid to injured community members,” Pierce says.
After the situation seemed to be diffused, Rittenhouse became increasingly concerned about people who were injured at the gas station, so he went in that direction with his first aid kit. He helped those he could find who were injured, either by administering aid or directing them which way to go for help beyond what he could offer.
The statement says that by the final time that Rittenhouse returned to the gas station and “confirmed there were no more injured individuals who needed assistance, police had advanced their formation and blocked what would have been his path back to the mechanic’s shop. Kyle then complied with the police instructions not to go back there. Kyle returned to the gas station until he learned of a need to help protect the second mechanic’s shop further down the street where property destruction was imminent with no police were nearby.”
“As Kyle proceeded towards the second mechanic’s shop, he was accosted by multiple rioters who recognized that he had been attempting to protect a business the mob wanted to destroy. This outraged the rioters and created a mob now determined to hurt Kyle. They began chasing him down. Kyle attempted to get away, but he could not do so quickly enough. Upon the sound of a gunshot behind him, Kyle turned and was immediately faced with an attacker lunging towards him and reaching for his rifle. He reacted instantaneously and justifiably with his weapon to protect himself, firing and striking the attacker,” Pierce explains.
Additionally, Rittenhouse stopped to ensure care for his attacker, hardly sounds like someone who had went to the riot with intent to kill.
“Kyle stopped to ensure care for the wounded attacker but faced a growing mob gesturing towards him. He realized he needed to flee for his safety and his survival. Another attacker struck Kyle from behind as he fled down the street. Kyle turned as the mob pressed in on him and he fell to the ground,” his legal team says. “One attacker kicked Kyle on the ground while he was on the ground. Yet another bashed him over the head with a skateboard. Several rioters tried to disarm Kyle. In fear for his life and concerned the crowd would either continue to shoot at him or even use his own weapon against him, Kyle had no choice but to fire multiple rounds towards his immediate attackers, striking two, including one armed attacker. The rest of the mob began to disperse upon hearing the additional gunshots.”
Rittenhouse then attempted to turn himself in, but was told to keep moving. He went and turned himself in to his local police that evening.
“Kyle got up and continued down the street in the direction of police with his hands in the air. He attempted to contact multiple police officers, but they were more concerned with the wounded attackers. The police did not take Kyle into custody at that time, but instead they indicated he should keep moving,” the statement says. “He fully cooperated, both then and later that night when he turned himself in to the police in his hometown, Antioch, Illinois.”
The legal team says that “in a reactionary rush to appease the divisive, destructive forces currently roiling this country, prosecutors in Kenosha did not engage in any meaningful analysis of the facts, or any in-depth review of available video footage (some of which shows that a critical state’s witness was not even at the area where the shots were fired); this was not a serious investigation.
the shooting in kenosha will have dire consequences for the democrap ag josh kaul.
the fake media did it again. the police should have taken rittenhouse into custody immediately. the police were more interested in attending the wounded that if, had the opportunity, would have killed them. His lawyer, John M. Pierce, is a fearless individual and will make a fool of kaul in the court should a trial occur. recall that the man rittenhouse wounded was a registered poediphile from another state carrying a weapon. wonder how many warrants he has outstanding? recall in the the movies Brave Heart when the king’s son’s lover had a hot poker inserted into his rectum and pushed into his abdominal and chest cavity?? maybe kaul should review the film clip and get use to this feeling of complete loss.
Once again, the left uses the court system for their political needs. The left will have work hard to suppress exculpatory evidence, muzzle the defense and railroad the defendant… just as they have done in their persecutions of Trump associates.
@MOS#8541: Don’t forget Keith Ellison. We’ll see a fine example of the trampling of due process… again.
As a person who enjoys shooting and guns, I want to point out a few things about this kid in Wisconsin that are basically going to wreck him in court and nullify any self defense argument he has.
1. He was 17. It was illegal for him to posses that rifle. In his home state you have to be 21, in Wisconsin you have to be 18. This was crime 1.
2. Crossing the state line with an illegally possessed weapon is a pretty big deal and a big fat number 2 on the crime list.
3. Wisconsin totally allows for the use of deadly force in self defense, but the caveat is that you cant be committing a crime while that use of force happens. Which we addressed above he was actively committing a crime by possessing that rifle.
4. Wisconsin has a Castle Doctrine. But you can only use deadly force under the castle doctrine if the perpetrators are in your dwelling, vehicle, or your place of business. You can’t just post up to protect a random business, also you can’t chase people if they decide to retreat. Wisconsin V. Charles L Chew is the case law if you want to check it out and not deem it as “fake news”.
5. In Wisconsin self defense law you cant be the instigator and then claim self defense. He became the instigator the second he pursued his first victim.
I get it. The kid thought he was gonna be a hero and help out. But, reality is he made a large number of bad decisions because he’s 17 and has his face buried in right-wing propaganda everyday and he can’t tell the difference. Now 2 people are dead and he’s headed to prison forever. This is what Trump’s violence promoting and race baiting creates, which we were warned of long ago.
@Ronald J. Ward: Last I heard, burning down other people’s businesses and attacking individuals with skateboards is illegal as well. Far more illegal than a misdemeanor weapons carrying charge. But, you on the left support lawlessness and decry self defense. You excuse political violence as you demand the destruction of police forces.
You will be seeing many more Rittenhouse’s if you continue supporting political terrorism.
@Ronald J. Ward:
Except he did not own the gun, nor did he cross a state line with it, and Wisconsin law has exceptions to allow 16-17 year olds to carry rifles and shotguns. As for Trump’s race-baiting, did you miss the Obama race-baiting and complete disregard for facts that normalized rioting, looting, and violence against whites and police?
@Kevin James:
Well, gee, so he’s being locked up for nothing? Seems like the law thinks they have a case. The guy admitted he went to protect property that wasn’t his and ended up using deadly force. He, by his own admission, put himself into a position to battle which left 2 people dead from him pulling the trigger of the rifle he took. I’m not trying to make this political but simply basing it on the law of Wisconsin.
Now back to politics, Obama has been gone for well over 3 years and even when he oversaw Treyvon Martin, Eric Garner, Michael Brown. Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, et al., the nation never saw anywhere near the level of turmoil in the streets as we’re seeing under Trump.
This is due to Trump fanning racial flames at every opportunity as well as his propaganda machine churning out disinformation that all protestors are looters and thugs, obviously to use as a smokescreen to quite his abject mishandling of COVID and the economy.
And from all appearances, it looks like the Trump cultists who consume this propaganda nonstop are now taking up weapons in caravans to help go shoot the black man who’s coming to take their homes.
We really haven’t seen this level of violence since the white man took to the streets in the 60s to prevent Civil Rights.
@Ronald J. Ward:
Pretty much. See, in Nazi Germany, whenever someone acted against the violent fascist regime, they were jailed. Same thing.
Of course, had he not been ATTACKED by a convicted sexual predator that was there to destroy other people’s property, NO ONE would have been hurt, much less killed. But, people like you who enjoy seeing the left wing terrorism carried out because you suffer such personal inadequacies can’t see the factors that actually CAUSED this tragedy (the tragedy that Kyle’s life is now chaotic… the deaths and wounding of these three scumbag, criminal terrorists is in no way a tragedy).
You know, you’re right. When you’re right, you’re right. There WAS destructive riots driven by the lies the left spread about those deaths, but nothing on the scale we are seeing now. I guess the question is… why?
Well, because the left would not gain anything by causing this much violence. The extent of the violence then was just to the extent of the Democrat weakness in stopping it. But now, the left had the idea that simple minded, stupid, easily fooled people would believe that the violence is Trump’s fault. So, currently, the left has instigated the violence, promoted the violence, excused the violence and fueled the violence. Note that it is ALL where Democrats are the government. Also note that, until just recently, not only have Democrats ignored the existence of the violence, but some with such overwhelming confidence in the stupidity of their constituents, have actually said it doesn’t exist; that it is a “myth”.
Now would be an excellent time and opportunity for you to provide an example of Trump fanning the flames of violence. Educate us.
A true and dedicated racist denies that this violence is anything but left wing terrorism.
@Ronald J. Ward:
Ronny, it you did not have shit in your head instead of a brain, a simple internet search for how self defense is defined by law, would help to not embarrass yourself as you do on a regular basis.
BTW ronny, Lin Wood, who defended Nick Sandman and took much money from cnn is part of the team defending Kyle Rittenhouse.
@Ronald J. Ward:
While the evil white men are taking up arms in self-defense, please tell us what race exactly is killing themselves and cops in record numbers? Is that Trump’s fault, or is it global warming, or is it the COVID, or is it the Democrat-run cities emboldening thugs by failing to enforce laws?
@Kevin James:
Aside from the many varibles that come into play from over the years to contribute to our cultural breakdown, I’d say one of the true culprits of this particular issue is a few bad apples in the police department that has given a black eye to an institution of very good and professional people.
Is it possible you can at least partially agree with that?
@Ronald J. Ward:
So you totally disagree with the the Democrat excuse for all this violence, “systemic racism”? You could lose your Lying Liberal Merit Badge for this!