Jury suspends deliberations in Rittenhouse homicide trial, will reconvene Wednesday

The fate of Kyle Rittenhouse is now in the hands of the jury.

They’ll have to decide if Rittenhouse was defending himself when he shot three people, killing two, during police protests in Kenosha last year or was acting as a vigilante responsible for needless deaths.

Lead prosecutor Thomas Binger spent more than two hours during closing arguments Monday laying out how Rittenhouse arrived in Kenosha looking for trouble.

He methodically showed video trying to establish that the killing of the first victim, Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, led to more shootings.

“One of the things to keep in mind is when the defendant provokes the incident, he loses the right to self-defense,” Binger said. “You cannot claim self-defense against a danger you create.”

After Rittenhouse shot Rosenbaum, he ran about two blocks and was chased by a large crowd with people chanting “get him,” according to video shown dozens of times throughout the trial.

He then killed Anthony Huber, 26, and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz.

Defense attorney Mark Richards appeared angry when it was his turn to present closing arguments. He was dismissive of Binger’s assertion that Rittenhouse was to blame.

“That’s garbage, just like his case,” Richards said.

Richards told jurors prosecutors were lying about Rittenhouse being the pursuer of Rosenbaum because their case was exploding in their face.

He portrayed Rittenhouse as a hero.

“They want it to be that Kyle was out there doing something improper,” Richards said. “Kyle was a 17-year-old kid out there trying to help this community.”

The Kenosha community experienced two days of chaotic violence and looting during demonstrations. The protest followed the police shooting on Aug. 23, 2020 of Jacob Blake, a Black man. Blake is paralyzed from the waist down.

Rittenhouse testified last week he came from Illinois to help protect businesses.

But Binger told jurors he doubted the 18-year-old’s sincerity. Binger brought up lies Rittenhouse told to media and law enforcement since the shootings.

“He pretended to guard what turned out to be an empty building, owned by people he had never even met, while fraudulently claiming all night long to be an EMT,” Binger said.

The 12-person jury began deliberations around 9:15 a.m. Tuesday.

Just after 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, the jury suspended deliberation for the day. The jury will reconvene at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

In an email shared with WPR, Binger said his office has received several requests from reporters seeking interviews or a press briefing after the jury reaches its verdict but the Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office reviewed state supreme court rulings on ethical guidelines for prosecutors and publicity.

“In light of these ethical guidelines, I have concluded that it would not be appropriate for our office to comply with your requests,” said Binger.

Defense attorney Mark Richards said he plans to hold a briefing with reporters after the verdict is delivered.

Rittenhouse faces the following charges:

• Count 1: First-degree reckless homicide, use of a dangerous weapon. This felony charge is connected to the death of Rosenbaum, the first man Rittenhouse shot.
• Count 2: First-degree recklessly endangering safety, use of a dangerous weapon. This charge is connected to reporter Richie McGinnis, who was in the line of fire when Rosenbaum was shot.
• Count 3: First-degree recklessly endangering safety, use of a dangerous weapon. Videos show Rittenhouse being kicked by an unknown man and then shooting at him. That is what this charge is related to.
• Count 4: First-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon. This felony charge is connected to the death of Huber, the second man Rittenhouse shot. The judge ruled the lesser included are: second-degree intentional homicide; first-degree reckless homicide.
• Count 5: Attempted first-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon. This charge is connected to the shooting of Grosskreutz. Grosskreutz is the third man Rittenhouse shot. The judge ruled the lesser included are: attempted second-degree intentional homicide; first-degree recklessly endangering safety.

Judge Bruce Schroeder issued jury instructions Monday. The instructions included the lesser included charges, giving the jury more options if they’re unable to agree on homicide and attempted homicide charges against Rittenhouse.

Also Monday, Schroeder dismissed the misdemeanor charge of possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor. Rittenhouse, who was 17 at the time of the shootings, was armed with an AR-style semi-automatic rifle. Wisconsin law prohibits minors from possessing firearms except for hunting.

The Rittenhouse trial has attracted national attention, and the case has been controversial from the start.

Schroeder made controversial pre-trial decisions to not allow the three people shot to be called victims. At the same time, he concluded they could be referred to as rioters, looters and arsonists during closing arguments. This decision contributed to the view that Schroeder is biased.

“This is a case that brings to the fore a lot of matters of public concern — gun rights, the use of force by police officers — and it makes sense that people are paying attention then to what’s happening in the courtroom and the manner in which conversations are occurring,” said Cecelia Klingele, a law professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Throughout the two-week trial, the city of Kenosha and the area outside the downtown courthouse have remained relatively quiet.

Justin Blake, Jacob Blake’s uncle, has been outside nearly every day protesting either alone or with a small group of supporters.

On Tuesday, around 40 people gathered outside the Kenosha County Courthouse, some in support of Rittenhouse and others supporting the men shot by Rittenhouse. Some chanted slogans like “Free Kyle” while others replied with chants of “F— Kyle.”

Among the crowd was Tavis Grant, national field director for human rights organization Rainbow PUSH. He said the case is an example of a “white privileged, white entitled justice system” and a “Black and brown disenfranchisement system.”

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Tanya McLean, founder of the community group Leaders of Kenosha called for peace while waiting for the jury’s verdict.

“We vow to continue to prioritize the safety of our community. We denounce those who feel emboldened by the murders of Anthony and Jojo to threaten, hurt and kill us, to follow us home, to scare us and to try to intimidate us, but we will not be intimidated,” she said Tuesday outside the courthouse. “Anyone threatening to come to our city to kill, hurt, threaten or do damage is absolutely not welcome.”

The Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department and Kenosha Police Department issued a joint press release stating law enforcement has worked for the past year to improve “response capabilities to large scale events.”

“At this time, we have no reason to facilitate road closures, enact curfews or ask our communities to modify their daily routines,” the statement read.

Still, Kenosha is bracing for the verdict. On Friday, Gov. Tony Evers authorized 500 Wisconsin Army National Guard troops to be ready to come to Kenosha to support local police.

Editor’s note: WPR’s Andrea Anderson, Madeline Fox, Corrine Hess, Jenny Peek and Rich Kremer contributed reporting to this story.