It is made even more difficult by the burden of expectations.
Intense media coverage pushes a public already divided by political differences to expect a social and political message from the jury’s decision. But the law requires something completely different: a rigorous analysis of facts and law by 12 ordinary citizens untouched by outside pressure.
The evidence presented during the trial has put a whole menu of political issues front and center, triggering a divisive national debate. Should Americans, including a then 17-year-old, be allowed to police the streets of a town in a neighboring state when law enforcement appears to some to be inadequate? Was Kyle Rittenhouse acting as a vigilante when he chose to arm himself and enter the arena of demonstrators and others, claiming to protect property and provide first aid? Should it be legal if it was? Was Rittenhouse looking for trouble, and should this limit his right to claim self-defense? Are we moving towards an America where openly armed political factions and demonstrators can freely roam the streets carrying AR-15s like militias in other chaotic and war-torn countries?
On August 25, 2020, Rittenhouse armed himself with an AR-15-style assault rifle and carried a medical kit as he drove into downtown Kenosha, Wisconsin. Rittenhouse, who moved there from Antioch, Illinois,
testified They were intended to protect businesses and provide first aid during the third night of the protests.
Jacob Blake’s Police Shooting, The now 18-year-old shot four people that night,
Two killed and a third injured, Prosecutors also alleged that the bullets “recklessly” endangered the lives of
other audience,
While prosecutors have argued that arriving at the protests with a weapon he was
provocative confrontationRittenhouse has created an extraordinarily powerful
self defense claim, During the two-week trial, Rittenhouse
testified that one of the men she killed, Joseph Rosenbaum, threatened to kill her and pursued her. Rittenhouse testified that he feared that Rosenbaum would be able to obtain his rifle and kill it. He too
testified That Anthony Huber was shot to death only after hitting Rittenhouse in the neck with a skateboard and holding his gun.
The jury will need to evaluate the validity of his self-defense claim and other disputed testimony. The man who was wounded by Rittenhouse bullets, Gege Grosskretz,
said on cross-examination that he contacted
within five feet of Rittenhouse, first with his hands in surrender and then his hands down, during which his Glock handgun
sharp in Rittenhouse. Defense noted
that it was different from Earlier accounts of Grosskretz.
Then the fact that Wisconsin is
an open carry state, and a rifle like Rittenhouse’s AR-15
was a legal weapon within those limits. Complicating the case even more is a dispute over one of the best options, with jurors assessing Rittenhouse’s actions:
video proof,
Rittenhouse’s
lawyers have argued That the “grainy” video that captured Rittenhouse’s actions on the night of August 25 is unbelievable because it was enhanced by “artificial intelligence” software. Defense lawyers claimed that this added pixel in the photographic material is now used against his client to prove that he “pointed” his weapon, prompting Rosenbaum to attack him. ; Prosecution made no offer
expert testimony to the contrary.
With this tangle of complications in the Rittenhouse case, it would be foolish to expect more symbolism from the verdict. If there is a lesson to be found, it is not in the outcome but in the evidence presented at the trial. Whether Rittenhouse is found guilty or acquitted, one thing remains clear: Video footage produced by most prosecutors shows a horrifying, bizarre scene of the streets of Kenosha on an August evening. Law and order had collapsed with civilians such as militia, heavily armed, assuming the role of law enforcement.
The only thing that would have been worse was if several other demonstrators had also chosen to carry and fire assault weapons like AR-15s at Wisconsin on that violent night. The city could then fall into a state of open war conceivable. If the test should send a message, it is not to the public but to those who explain how to apply the Second Amendment to America’s streets in the 21st century. Let’s hope that the judges of the Supreme Court
decide now Should the weapons be easier to carry in heavily populated urban settings, Rittenhouse was tuned in to the test.
Kenosha feels like a microcosm of the heavily divided American nation. And as the nation awaits a verdict, 500 National Guard soldiers
are on standby To ensure that decisions are accepted and implemented regardless of consequences. If the nation is to survive and prosper in the future, we must settle our disputes this way: in courts of law, not with armed citizens patrolling the streets.
