#Rittenhouse #Kenosha #Trial #Arraignment #Wisconsin #Antifa
Kyle Rittenhouse has been ordered to stand trial over the shooting of three Black Lives Matter protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
The decision was handed down Thursday, following a contentious hearing conducted over Zoom, during which the 17-year-old's lawyer tried to show he had acted in self-defense.
However, Kenosha County Circuit Court Commissioner Loren Keating determined that there was enough probable cause for the case to proceed to a trial.
Rittenhouse, of Antioch, Illinois, has been charged with homicide and attempted homicide over the August 25 fatal shootings of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber and the wounding of Gaige Grosskreutz.
The incidents occurred during a night of civil unrest in Kenosha, which was sparked by the police shooting of black man, Jacob Blake.
Rittenhouse told police he was attacked while guarding someone's business and that he fired in self-defense.
He was freed from jail last month after posting $2 million bond, with most of the money raised through a legal defense fund set up by conservatives who view him as a patriot who was protecting other people´s property.
Supporters of the Black Lives Matter movement have painted Rittenhouse as a trigger-happy white supremacist who was crossed state lines from Illinois to Wisconsin to deliberately provoke a response.
During the hearing, Rittenhouse's attorney, Mark Richards, showed several screenshots from videos that were recorded on the night of the shootings to try to show that his client acted in self-defense.
One photo showed Rittenhouse running from another protester who had a gun, and another featured Rittenhouse on the ground as Huber struck him with a skateboard.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger objected to Richards' argument.
'What happened before this incident ... does not go to the probable cause as to whether or not the defendant committed a felony, and I object to the relevance of this,' he stated.
Binger said the evidence shows a felony was committed, but Richards disagreed, saying 'the government can go off on their chaotic quest, but the evidence is clear.'
In addition to the homicide and attempted homicide charges, Rittenhouse has also been charged with two counts of first degree reckless endangerment and possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor.
Keating denied a defense request to dismiss several of those charges. He ordered Rittenhouse to stand trial on all six counts.
His arraignment is scheduled for January 5.
