A look at key points in Kyle Rittenhouse's testimony

3 years ago 231

MADISON, Wis. – Kyle Rittenhouse took the basal successful his execution proceedings Wednesday, testifying astir however helium changeable 3 men during a protestation against constabulary brutality successful Kenosha, Wisconsin, past year.

Rittenhouse killed Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz. He faces aggregate charges, including intentional homicide. Rittenhouse, who was 17 astatine the clip of the shootings, has argued that the men attacked him and helium fired successful self-defense.

Here's a look astatine immoderate highlights from his testimony:

‘NORMAL TEENAGE STUFF’

Rittenhouse said helium lived successful Antioch, Illinois, conscionable crossed the authorities enactment from Kenosha, successful August 2020. He enjoyed swimming, going to the formation with his friends and “just mean teenage stuff.” He was a constabulary explorer for the Grayslake Police Department and a cadet with the Antioch Fire Department. He besides was a certified lifeguard trained successful CPR, defibrillator usage and “basic beingness support.” He said his father, grandmother, aunt, uncle and a relative unrecorded successful Kenosha — an evident effort to propulsion backmost against the prosecution portrayal of him arsenic an outsider who went determination looking for trouble.

WHY DID HE GO TO KENOSHA?

The protests began connected Aug. 23, 2020, hours aft a achromatic Kenosha constabulary serviceman changeable Jacob Blake, a Black man, during a home disturbance. Rittenhouse said helium saw video connected societal media of the unrest.

Two days later, Rittenhouse went to downtown Kenosha and volunteered to cleanable graffiti disconnected a precocious school. He met the owners of a car dealership wherever vehicles had been burned, offered his “condolences,” and said helium wanted to help. He said the owners asked his person to support their business, and that helium joined his person and others that night. He took his semiautomatic firearm and first-aid supplies. He gave his bulletproof vest — which helium said was issued by the Grayslake Police Department — to a friend. He said helium felt helium wouldn't request it “because I'm going to beryllium helping people.”

WHAT DID HE SAY ABOUT HIS ENCOUNTERS WITH ROSENBAUM?

Rittenhouse testified that Rosenbaum threatened his beingness twice.

He said helium had been putting retired fires and asking radical if they needed aesculapian assistance erstwhile helium saw Rosenbaum carrying a alloy concatenation and wearing a mask. Rosenbaum began screaming astatine him, helium said.

“He was conscionable huffy astir something. He's screaming, 'If I drawback immoderate of you (expletives) unsocial I'm going to (expletive) termination you.'”

When helium encountered Rosenbaum again later, Rosenbaum shouted, “I'm going to chopped your (expletive) hearts retired and termination you,” Rittenhouse said.

Later, helium was walking with a occurrence extinguisher aft proceeding protesters were burning cars astatine 1 of the tons his friends were trying to protect. Rittenhouse said helium saw a occurrence successful a motortruck connected 1 of the tons past Joshua Ziminski approached him with a gun. Rosenbaum came retired from down immoderate cars and “ambushed” him, Rittenhouse testified.

He said helium tried to tally distant but Rosenbaum chased him arsenic Ziminski yelled “get him" and “kill him.” Rosenbaum threw a container astatine him that helium mistook for the chain. Rittenhouse said helium pointed his firearm astatine Rosenbaum but Rosenbaum didn't stop. He heard a gunshot down him and ”I retrieve his manus connected the tube of my gun,” Rittenhouse said.

He said helium fired 4 times, went up to Rosenbaum to spot if helium could assistance him, past ran distant due to the fact that radical were yelling “get his ass, get him, get him."

WHAT HAPPENED AS HE RAN?

Rittenhouse said Huber deed him successful the cervix with a skateboard and idiosyncratic deed him successful the backmost of the caput with a rock, causing him to stumble. A antheral tried to footwear him successful the look aft helium went down. He fired doubly astatine that antheral but missed. Rittenhouse said helium feared the antheral “would person stomped my look in.”

Huber deed him successful the cervix again with the skateboard and grabbed his gun.

“I tin consciousness the strap coming disconnected my body,” helium said. “I occurrence 1 shot.”

In the adjacent instant, Grosskreutz ran up to him. He lowered his firearm arsenic Grosskreutz raised his hands successful a “surrender” motion. But Grosskreutz was holding a pistol and arsenic Rittenhouse lowered his limb Grosskreutz pointed the pistol “directly astatine my head,” Rittenhouse said. He fired once, hitting Grosskreutz successful the arm.

WHAT DID HE SAY ABOUT HIS INTERACTIONS WITH POLICE?

Rittenhouse testified that aft helium changeable Grosskreutz helium approached a enactment of constabulary vehicles with his hands up.

“People were screaming and I'm conscionable trying to get to the police,” helium said. “I didn't bash thing wrong. I defended myself."

He walked up to a squad car and told an serviceman helium had conscionable changeable somebody. “The serviceman said 'get the (expletive) backmost oregon you're going to beryllium capsicum sprayed' and ‘go home, spell home, spell home,’” helium said.

He turned himself successful astatine the Antioch Police Department astir an hr aboriginal due to the fact that the Kenosha presumption was barricaded, helium said. He said officers made him beryllium connected a seat and hold for Kenosha detectives to arrive.

“I was vomiting and having panic attacks and my caput was spinning,” helium said. “I couldn't deliberation clearly.”

WHAT DID HE SAY ABOUT HIS STATE OF MIND?

A defendant's authorities of caput is important successful a self-defense case. He indispensable amusement that helium reasonably believed his beingness was successful information and the magnitude of unit helium utilized was due to triumph an acquittal. Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger pressed Rittenhouse astir his intentions during cross-examination, asking him whether helium meant to termination the 3 men.

“I didn't mean to termination them. I intended to halt the radical who were attacking me," Rittenhouse said.

DID RITTENHOUSE KEEP HIS COMPOSURE?

His younker shone through, for illustration erstwhile helium referred to attorneys arsenic “you guys." He gestured often with his arms, simulating however Rosenbaum reached for him, however Grosskreutz held up his hands with the pistol and however helium walked toward constabulary with his hands up.

When helium was describing however Rosenbaum appeared and chased him, helium broke down successful tears, and Judge Bruce Schroeder called for a recess.

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Find AP’s afloat sum connected the proceedings of Kyle Rittenhouse at: https://apnews.com/hub/kyle-rittenhouse

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