Kyle Rittenhouse was 17 years old, and lived in Antioch, Illinois with his mother. His father, grandmother, aunt, uncle and a cousin lived approximately 20 miles away in Kenosha Wisconsin. During the unrest he went to stay with his father in Kenosha.
His mother did not drive him to Kenosha with an AR15 rifle, and drop him off down town during the riots.
While staying with his father, he volunteered to clean graffiti off a school. Later, the owners of a car dealership (where a number of cars were vandalized and set on fire) asked a friend of his to help protect their business. He told them he wanted to help, and volunteered to go with his friend and others that night. He took with him an AR15 his friend loaned him and a bag of first aid supplies that night. He also had a bullet proof vest but gave it to a friend, explaining that he wouldn’t need it “because I’m going to be helping people.”
He was interviewed several times that night. Some of the interviews were cut short when he dashed off when people called for a medic. In one interview he was asked why he was crying a rifle. He explained that he was there to provide medical aid and to help people, but needed the rife for protection. Later, Kyle was seen running around with a fire extinguisher putting out fires, and asking people if they needed medical help. It was during this time he first met Rosenbaum, when he approached Kyle and another man and screamed at them, “If I catch any of you (expletive) alone I’m going to (expletive) kill you!”
Not lone after that, Kyle saw Rosenbaum again, and Rosenbaum shouted at him “I’m going to cut your (expletive) hearts out and kill you.”
In another video, Rosenbaum can be seen yelling at another person crying a rifle, screaming “Shoot me! Shoot me (n-word)!
Later, as he was hurrying to help put out a fire in a car lot, he was approached by a man named Joshua Ziminski who was carrying a gun. Rosenbaum then appeared from behind some cars and attacked Kyle.
Kyle then ran away, and Rosenbaum and Ziminski chased him. As Kyle was running he was heard shouting “Friendly! Friendly! Friendly!”
In the numerous videos of the incident, Kyle is seen running down the street and into a gas station parking lot. You can hear someone yelling “Get him!” And “Kill him!” Rosenbaum can be seen throwing something at his head. Kyle turns and points his rifle at Rosenbaum for a moment, but when he doesn’t back off (or even slow down) he turns back and continues running. Joshua Ziminski can be seen in the videos firing a hand gun into the air.
Seconds later, Rosenbaum catches up to Kyle, trapping him behind a parked car. A witness testified they heard Rosenbaum yell “F*** you!” as he tried to grab his rifle. Kyle fires 4 times in rapid succession, hitting Rosenbaum.
Kyle then squeezes between parked cars and hurried back around to where Rosenbaum is now laying As he is doing this, you can hear someone else shoot 3 more shots and you can hear the sound of glass breaking. Another witness, later identified Richard McGinniss, can be seen in the video taking his shirt off to apply pressure to Rosenbaum’s wounds as he calls for someone to call 911.
Kyle approaches them, then pulls out his phone and appears to be calling someone. He then suddenly turns and takes off running again.
He is running down the street toward to line of police blocking the road, and a mob is chasing him. In the video footage you can see one person catch up to him and hit him in the back of the head. He runs a little further before tripping and falling into the street.
Kyle managed to get into a sitting position just as one of his pursuers leaps into the air, kicking him in the head. Kyle fired one shot at him and missed.
Anthony Huber then ran up and struck Kyle in the head with a skateboard. Kyle fired once, fatally striking him in the chest.
Gaige Grosskreutz ran up to Kyle with a gun in his hand. Kyle pointed his rifle at him, but Grosskreutz stopped, and held his hands up. Kyle then began lowering his weapon, and Grosskreutz leaped at him, pointing his gun at Kyle’s head. Kyle again raised the barrel and fired on shot, hitting Grosskreutz in the bicep.
At this point Kyle got back on his feet and continued toward the police line. He approached the police with his hands in the air and yelled “I shot someone!” several times.
It can only be assumed that the police are not accustomed to shooting suspects running toward them with their hands in the air and confessing. With all the noise and shouting the police probably thought he was just a bystander yelling “They shot someone” instead of the suspect shouting “I shot someone”.
The police ordered him to get out of the road and drove right past him.
So what do you think. Was Kyle Rittenhouse the aggressor? Was he threatening or interfering with peaceful protestors? Was he a vigilante, taking the law into his own hands, and dispensing his own brand of “justice”?
I think the answer to that is a resounding “No!”
Up until he was chased down the street, he had only offered and provided medical treatment to anyone who wanted or needed it, and had helped put out fires. In fact, there are numerous videos that show him walking along asking if anyone needed medical assistance, and carrying a fire extinguisher and putting out fires.
He had insisted the rifle he carried was only for personal protection, and there were no reported instances of him threatening people or “enforcing laws”.
When threatened, he ran away!
He only fired his weapon when he was in immediate danger, and his assailants were just inches away. And in every instance that personal danger was clear and immanent. This could not be more eviden than when he pointed his rifle at Grosskreutz when he ran up on him. When he put up his hands to indicate he was not a threat, Kyle did not shoot Grosskreutz, and even lowered his weapon, despite the fact that Grosskreutz was holding a hand gun in his right hand. He only fired when Grosskreutz lunged forward and pointed that gun at his head.
I’m not sure there could be a more clear case of self defense.