Court documents, newly uncovered video, and a timeline analysis by the New York Times suggest that Kyle Rittenhouse may have acted in self-defense when he shot three protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Riots and counterprotests led to shots being fired Tuesday night, with two people being killed while another was wounded.
Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old Illinois resident, was arrested and charged with first-degree intentional homicide in connection with the shootings.
A more complete picture of the events suggests Rittenhouse may have been actively engaged in defending his own life.
RELATED: Kenosha Riots Intensify Into Gun Fights: 2 People Shot Dead, 1 Wounded
The New York Times analysis of footage of the night’s events shows the teenager was being pursued by a group of protesters when an “unknown gunman fires into the air” and another man simultaneously lunges towards him.
At 23:19, Rittenhouse is seen in this YouTube livestream. He’s being chased into a parking lot. While he is being pursued, an unknown gunman fires the first shot into the air. pic.twitter.com/BSD8rd6ARN
— Christiaan Triebert (@trbrtc) August 27, 2020
The muzzle flash of the first shot by the unknown gunman and the smoke rising from the handgun can be seen in this video capturing the first shooting from a different angle. pic.twitter.com/ddRjsgiMN7
— Christiaan Triebert (@trbrtc) August 27, 2020
The Criminal Complaint Against Kyle Rittenhouse
Further, a criminal complaint filed against Rittenhouse appears to show he acted in self-defense.
Reporter Richard McGinnis stated that the first shooting victim “was trying to get the defendant’s gun” and that “when [the victim] was shot, he had leaned in [towards Rittenhouse].”
At this point, Rittenhouse reportedly fled and was chased yet again by a mob shouting “beat him up,” “get his a***,” and “get him!”
It mentions that a male takes a swing at Rittenhouse, which “makes contact with the defendant, knocking his hat off.”
After the teen stumbles to the ground, the complaint reads another man “appears to be trying to pull the gun away from” him and ends up getting fatally shot.
The third victim, who was wounded, moves toward Rittenhouse and “appears to be holding a handgun in his right hand when he was shot.”
Media Bias 101
What has been grossly negligent in this entire case is the media’s willingness to label the teenager a murderer.
That, and their willingness to simultaneously hold up Jacob Blake, a man who was shot in the back by a police officer in Kenosha and the very reason these riots have taken place, as an innocent victim, is a lesson in media bias 101.
Mainstream media has immediately called for Rittenhouse’s head while ignoring the fact that Blake’s shooting could be another case of self-defense – self-defense for the police officer.
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Police scanner audio has revealed that Blake was trespassing and took a woman’s keys, and officers were advised before the confrontation that he had a warrant for a violent felony and two misdemeanors.
RELATED: CNN Relentlessly Mocked After Calling Kenosha Riots ‘Fiery But Mostly Peaceful’
Blake also reportedly had a history with local law enforcement.
Video of the incident that kicked off the riots shows Blake ignoring commands from Wisconsin police officers, physically fighting with them, being tasered unsuccessfully twice, and then lunging into his vehicle for what was reportedly a knife.
Was Blake’s shooting justified? Did Rittenhouse act in self-defense? The evidence, god willing, will sort these cases out. But the media’s reaction in both has been irresponsible.
And had they not rushed to judgment in anointing Blake an innocent saint, Rittenhouse may never have found himself running for his life.
Tucker: How shocked are we that 17 year olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would pic.twitter.com/MGl7tdz9B5
— Acyn Torabi (@Acyn) August 27, 2020
The same media had a collective coronary when Fox News host Tucker Carlson pointed out the obvious – that Democrats calling to defund the police while simultaneously encouraging violence in the streets are just as responsible for what happened in Kenosha as anybody else.
“Kenosha’s devolved into anarchy because the authorities in charge of the city abandoned it,” Carlson explained. “People in charge from the Governor of Wisconsin on down refused to enforce the law.”
“How shocked are we that 17-year-olds with rifles decided they had to maintain order when no one else would?” he asked.
Not shocked at all. This is what happens when you have people seeking law and order on one side pitted against rioters, anarchists, and criminals on the other, while the police stay on the sidelines.
People fearing for their life, who see arson and looting constantly while those guilty of these acts get away with it, are eventually going to defend themselves and their city.
They have that right.
