Kyle Rittenhouse Takes Stand in Homicide Trial [Video]

BY: Walker

Published 3 years ago

Kyle Rittenhouse, who’s charged with killing two men during a 2020 protest in Wisconsin, took the stand on Wednesday.

via: Revolt

“I didn’t do anything wrong. I defended myself,” he testified.

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Rittenhouse claimed he was protecting private property and providing first aid during the anti-police brutality protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin last August. He accused Joseph Rosenbaum, whom he fatally shot, as being “the person who attacked me first and threatened to kill me twice.”

“[Rosenbaum] screamed, ‘If I catch any of you fuckers alone, I’m going to fucking kill you,” Rittenhouse claimed. “He said, ‘I’m going to cut your fucking hearts out.’”

The 18-year-old also testified that Joshua Ziminski told Rosenbaum to “get him and kill him.” Rosenbaum then began chasing Rittenhouse and threw a plastic bag at him, but Rittenhouse claimed he thought the object was a chain. Rittenhouse also said he heard a gunshot behind him, which police testified earlier in the trial was an initial shot fired by Ziminski.

According to CNN, it was during his testimony about Rosenbaum that Rittenhouse began crying, prompting Kenosha County Circuit Judge Bruce Schroeder to call for a recess.

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Later on, Rittenhouse testified that Anthony Huber, the second man he shot and killed, attacked him with a skateboard and grabbed his gun.

“Mr. Huber runs up… He strikes me in the neck with his skateboard a second time,” Rittenhouse testified. “I can feel the strap coming off my body. I fired one shot.”

During the testimony, Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger repeatedly asked Rittenhouse whether he intended to kill anyone the night he went to the protest.

“I didn’t intend to kill them. I intended to stop the people who were attacking me,” Rittenhouse said. “I did what I had to do to stop the person who was attacking me.”

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Prosecution rested its case against Rittenhouse on Tuesday (Nov. 9) after calling 22 witnesses to the stand. As reported by REVOLT, Rittenhouse faces five felony charges for fatally shooting the two men and injuring a third during the 2020 protest, which was spurred by the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

The handling of Rittenhouse’s killings has received widespread criticism, particularly in comparison to the repeated instances of violence being perpetrated against people of color, often at the hands of law enforcement.

https://twitter.com/4theculture____/status/1458470956586999810?s=20

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