This short Article pertains to the violence in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Tuesday, the 25th of August, 2020. Kyle Rittenhouse, a youth of 17 years from Antioch, Illinois took two lives with gunfire and injured a third man. There was no police involvement. There was no harm to a Black person. These circumstances take the matter outside the parameters of the “White Like Me” series which will soon address recent cops-on-Blacks violence and urban riots.
I have no inside information about Kyle Rittenhouse. From published or broadcast accounts I have learned a few circumstances. During daylight on Tuesday Kyle participated with others in cleaning up graffiti near the Kenosha County Courthouse. Sometime after sunset Kyle and other openly armed individuals stood on guard at a local car dealership to protect it from looting. Kyle was armed with a .223 caliber rifle of the AR-15 style. At or near the auto dealership post at a time when Kyle had not yet fired his rifle there was some act of aggression from Joseph Rosenbaum, now deceased. I have heard from multiple sources that Rosenbaum “threw a plastic bag” at Kyle. Go ahead and try throwing a plastic bag. It will not go far or have much impact unless there is something within the bag. I have heard from at least three sources that Rosenbaum then attacked Kyle with the apparent intent of disarming him. Rosenbaum, a registered sex offender, was shot dead. From here it looks a lot like a shooting in self-defense. I have not seen video of the first assault on Kyle or the consequent shooting.
Where Kyle appears in the video that I have seen is a short time later as he is walking down the middle of a street in proximity to many others who keep their distance and who are not shot or shot at. Then there are those who seem to be in pursuit of Kyle. One of those pursuers contributed to Kyle’s fall onto the pavement. Then another young man raced quickly up to Kyle and smashed him with a skateboard before trying to take the rifle. That young man, Anthony Huber, was also shot dead. A third man closely approached Kyle and took a bullet to the arm. Two dead and one wounded. If Kyle wanted to shoot every protestor who came into range, he missed many, many opportunities.
I would like to know additional details. What exactly did Mr. Rosenbaum do? How did Kyle get separated from his armed comrades at the car dealership? How many shots did Kyle fire? We know there was a 30-round magazine.
My opinion is that a lad of 17 years is too young to carry an AR-15 style rifle in circumstances where his presence is optional and where violent confrontation is so likely. Being there, Kyle had cause to be armed. But he should not have been there. I’m told that Kyle was too young for legal open carry of a firearm under Wisconsin law. That does not mean he forfeited his right to self-defense. See, for instance, the CLB Appellate Case Note from late June 2020 titled “Self-Defense for the Unlawfully Armed.”
Kyle is charged with Wisconsin offenses, including first degree intentional homicide. The weapon possession charge is a mere misdemeanor. Good luck, Kyle. May you be blessed with good representation.
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