Kyle Rittenhouse trial's devolving, groan...

A few months ago, Rittenhouse was arrested for underage drinking at a bar with a bunch of white supremacists while he was out on bail. He got a slap on the wrist for that.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/01/14/kyle-rittenhouse-proud-...

The world just keeps getting wackier and wackier, but not in a good way so much anymore.

Underage for the gun, took illegal gun across state lines, posed as LEO, 2murders one attempted murder.

Wore a Free as Fuck tshirt on his drinking trip, hanging with Proud Boys.

The question is what will you and I do about it?

Pretty clear what they are willing to do.

He's gonna walk.

The self defense claim is so absurd. And that Judge is a POS.

it gone get much uglier afore it get any brighter

Perhaps they can be referred to as 'targets'...that's in a language they understand. he was out hunting libs.

One day Kyle will grow up, and actually have to get a real job, and enter the real world.

Karma sometimes takes time,

but I have strong feeling that it will eventually find him.

He will start a podcast called: Dumb

Kyle will never grow up.

Worst trial ever. The judge sucks, from him taking a hissy fit at the prosecution, to his final instructions to the jury,, which was a 20 minute head spinning cluster fuck of legal babble I'm sure no one on the jury kept up with.  The lawyers on both sides suck.  Boooooring as fuck monotone, no excitement, bottom of their class rejects.  The whole trial's been like watching a couple of 0-8 cellar dweller JV teams go at it.  How the jury can stay awake thru this shit is beyond me. A lives taken trial with no edge of your seat courtroom drama whatsoever.  I feel so bad for the victims.

You just know the punk is gonna skate.

...

At least the jury can now consider lesser included charges.   It would be a shame if this little puke gets off entirely.

meh, crooked Judge is setting this up so the lil terrorist walks with zero convictions 
 

Jury: we can convict the minor of carrying  an illegal weapon, right?

Judge: No, that's off the table. 

He is sure to be haunted and likely hunted in or out of prison. 

He's 18 and has Trump followers blowing smoke up his ass about how he's a hero. I'm inclined to think he'd be hunted more than haunted.

If you walk around with a machine gun

and feel "threatened"

you can kill anyone who makes you feel threatened,

because that's the law for cops.

yep.

On the other hand, I am about to watch the moonrise

and listen to row jimmy from that latest Dave's custy release.

loud.

I hope I don't threaten anybody.

sigh

This Judge is a total tool and an antivaxer most likely.

1st day of trial - Judge says you shall not refer to those shot as victims.

Friday - Judge says the jury will get to weigh some lesser charges in Kyle Rittenhouse case.

Today - Judge has dismissed a count of possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18.

So much for the lesser charges.

This asshole is as bad as Lance Ito. Can a judge get shit canned this late in the proceedings ? 

If one believes the media narrative,  the dweeb "rittenhouse"  put out a dumpster fire,  and then various child-rapists and wife-beaters attacked him with firearms.

I think the whole story is total BS,  but the media has no laws governing what they tell people.
Most of the riots over the last couple years were full of Feds in one pose or another.

Same shit on the January 6 Capitol Invasion.  1000 feds and 200 idiots,  put it on TV.

Ånyway,  Rittenhouse Square on Philadeplhia is Primo Real Esstate,  named after a Fellow who started a Papermaking Trade way back when.

The self defense claim is so absurd. And that Judge is a POS. <<<

THIS ! Thanks Nancy

Worst trial ever. The judge sucks <<<

This Too

He is sure to be haunted and likely hunted in or out of prison. <<<

This Tooo

smh

The normalization of vigilantism...

Person illegally crosses state lines with an AR. Person knowingly and willingly inserts themselves a situation. Person kills a few people. Person claims self-defense.

Lol at Stu's media/Deep State conspiracy.

He supposedly went down there, armed, for the purpose of "protecting property". To me, that means he was prepared to shoot somebody to protect property that wasn't his.

That's not self defense - more like somewhere between first and second degree murder.

The blubbering was a cute touch. Too bad his white supremacist support group wasn't there to hand tissues out for this poor, misunderstood, upstanding citizen.

Fuck him and good riddance-house.

>>>Same shit on the January 6 Capitol Invasion.  1000 feds and 200 idiots,  put it on TV.
 

This is so stupid.

If you are going to pick up a weapon then you better own up to the responsibility of using it. 

It would have been great if this little whiny mama's boy had the blanks that Alec Baldwin was supposed to and didn't know it.

Jury still deliberating and has been sent home for the night.

Just when you thought this trial couldn't get any more bizarre

Kyle Rittenhouse picks numbers at random to determine his jury | The Week
https://theweek.com/news/1007197/kyle-rittenhouse-picks-numbers-at-rando...

^^^^

I have seen the drawing numbers out of a hat before.   Different judges have different practices when it comes to the alternate jurors.  Some will let the alternates know they are alternates from the beginning of the trial, other judges will not tell the alternates they are alternates until the end of the trial (presumably so they will pay attention), while some others will do what the judge did in this case and decide who the alternates are after the close of testimony by random drawing.

Verdict apparently reached - parties gathering for reading

....not guilty on all counts (?)

Straight bullshit

Hard to be found guilty when the judge is on the defense team

Wrongful death suit, civil rights suit.

Well, I guess this means if an unarmed person every gets in your face and starts yelling threats at you, you can just whip out a gun, shoot them dead, and call it good.

> Wrongful death suit, civil rights suit.

Sure, after the rioting ends.

It means that you can go someplace looking for trouble, knowingly and willingly put yourself in the middle of trouble, kill people, and then claim self defense.

What a loophole for White Supremicists everywhere. Load up the truck with automatic weapons and head on down to the closest crime-ridden inner city. Then just start killing, and say it's because you were scared.

My heart hurts.

>>>What a loophole for White Supremicists everywhere. Load up the truck with automatic weapons and head on down to the closest crime-ridden inner city. Then just start killing, and say it's because you were scared.

You forgot that after you kill you can fundraise millions of dollars and get offered a job to work for a  Republican Congressman.  

You think a black kid could now walk into a Klan rally and open fire without repercussions, because they were scared?

Justice is color blind, right?

Well to be a direct comparison, he would have to be shooting black people and we already don't give a fuck about that

He can now  go work for Gaetz and provide him with the phone numbers of all his 17 year old friends...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CoxQWFtqaYM
Don't Take Your Guns To Town (, Kyle)

Bringing Johnny Cash into this conversation makes me think of the line from Folsom Prison Blues about shooting a man in Reno just to watch him die.

absolutely sickening.

I went down to those dusty streets, blood was on my mind
I guess them strangers hadn't heard the news
'Cause I shot first and killed em, Lord, they didn't even draw

100% expected verdict. I've been sick over this since the turd pulled the trigger. No rioting yet, the streets eerily calm. 

let the protests begin.

the streets are eerily calm because everyone is in shock and saying "WTF, really?"

Trump and the RNC filled the courts all the way down to the local level.

> the streets are eerily calm because everyone is in shock and saying "WTF, really?"

And because the sun is still in the sky.

President Biden on Rittenhouse verdict just now, arriving on the South Lawn: “I stand by what the jury has to say. The jury system works.”

"What we are witnessing is a system functioning as designed and protecting those it was designed for."  -- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Looks like the only justice for his victims will be when a  vigilante does to the punk what he did to others. Call it "self defense", right?

...

Our country is seriously broken and has been for much longer than any of us will admit. The sad reality is it's only going to get worse and unfortunately I don't see any fixes anywhere on the horizon. I truly feel saddened and sorry for the world my children and soon to be grandchildren will inherit. What a fucking shame we didn't do enough to change things when we had the chance. My only solace is that if I'm lucky, I'll only have to witness this shitshow for approximately another 20 years. If I'm lucky. It's almost enough to make me give up 26 years of sobriety. Perhaps one final joint before I ultimately check out of this place. Sheesh. 

I'll be calling Biden "Tone Deaf Joe" from now on. AOC and Kaepernick nailed it though.

Fuck biden. Never been a huge fan, but that remark is just too far gone to let stand. Unbelievable.

Concise observation from Sherrilyn Ifill, NAACP Legal Defense Fund,

Kyle Rittenhouse traveled to Kenosha, Wisconsin, in response to protests over the unjust police shooting of Jacob Blake and armed himself with a semi-automatic rifle he believed was unlawful for him to own. Rittenhouse lied about being a medical professional, then shot and killed two people while injuring a third. Despite numerous confrontations in the streets on Kenosha and the presence of other armed individuals, Rittenhouse was the only person who shot and killed someone that night. After Rittenhouse shot multiple people and called his friend stating, ‘I just killed someone,’ he then approached law enforcement officers and apparently disobeyed their commands; but was still able to walk away without being arrested.

“Fifteen days prior to that deadly evening, Rittenhouse was recorded saying that he wished he had his rifle in order to shoot some men he believed were shoplifters. Months after the shootings in Kenosha, Rittenhouse was seen at a bar flashing a white power sign as men reportedly sang the anthem of the white nationalist Proud Boys group to him. Wisconsin's guns laws have been repeatedly loosened, strengthening the ability to carry openly in 2011, and loosening other protections in 2015, opening the door for people to brazenly transport and carry weapons, including semi-automatic rifles, with substantial protections.

“Rittenhouse’s actions before, after, and during that night in Kenosha, and the impunity afforded to his actions do not exist in isolation from the larger context of racism, lax gun laws, and the deep flaws in our criminal justice system that so powerfully shape public life in this country.

“We should not forget that these killings took place amid protests in Kenosha. The history of protest is integral to the fight for racial justice in this country and there remains a concerted attack to encroach on this right. Rittenhouse’s conduct must be understood within an environment in which armed militias and vigilantes are acting to silence protesters, and where state legislatures have advanced anti-protest bills in the aftermath of demonstrations calling for racial justice.

“While the actions of all parties during the trial will be scrutinized over time, the acquittal of Rittenhouse on all charges, and the lauding of him as a hero, by right-wing elected leaders and others, will embolden would-be vigilantes who intimidate protestors demanding racial justice to believe that they can escape accountability for their violence.”

Had his victims been black we would have seen some unrest in Kenosha.

Cheeseheads don't riot, Portlanders do, but that city's unruly to begin with.

Sure, expect Joe to toss gasoline on a fire, silly wabbits.

Jamspace is wise,  nailed it.  I too thought by this point in my life things would be much different in this country, much better for all. But the momentum of the 60's died at Kent State, and the good boomers decided it was easier to back away and survive than challenge the status quo. What we were left with was soulless boomers like trump whose only concern was watching their portfolios grow.

Most likely had this trial taken place in Dane County with Dane County jurors, Kyle would be blubbering in prison right now. 

Biden did exactly what any president should do, which is to stand by the rule of law. He was 100% correct in saying that the system did its job. It did. There were 12 jurors who heard the case and made their decision. Although some of the things the judge did were weird, they were common to him. He never lets h victims be called victims, and he always allows the defendant to pick the jurors from the hat. The trial was otherwise kosher, and the verdict has to be respected. We can't have politicians keep intervening in legal proceedings. We can't have politicians saying that trials that follow the current laws are invalid. That's exactly what Trump did.

As president, he can and should now start looking into some of the laws themselves, and trying to affect positive changes so that some little fuck like Rittenhouse can't get away with it. That's what I'm looking for him to do.

Bold move, Brian, and I pretty much agree. I hate the outcome too but none of us were on the jury and did not see everything presented either which apparently solidified the verdict. If the trial were held in Dane County/Madison or Timbucktoo is irrelevant. If someone gets popped for Cannabis in KS, they cannot reasonably expect the trial to be held in CA, for example. 

> Biden did exactly what any president should do, which is to stand by the rule of law.

That's not necessarily true, BK. I'm thinking of Abraham Lincoln's opposition to slavery as one example. The right to own slaves was at the time protected by law, but Lincoln actively opposed that evil institution while he was President.

....so, attack courts and juries until a "favorable" outcome is/can be reached? There are plenty of regions/locales across this country where I would never want to have to "rely on my peers" for a verdict.

Like Brian said, fight for better laws, etc. Lawyers conversely play their hands and oft-times press for change of venues all the time in their attempts to chip around the edges of the margin and help their cause, their clients, and tip the outcomes in their favor. 

At first Lincoln was oppose to the expansion of slavery into the new states. He wasn't for ending the institution in the South. That cam later.

Not necessarily a fair analogy, though. This was one court case. He did say that he was saddened by the results, but that the jury system worked and we have to respect that. I don't disagree.

We are now in a time where people on all sides think that their stupid fucking opinions should trump the rule of law. It's fucked up and tearing this nation apart. The President has to remind us that when followed to the rules, a jury decision has to be respected.

That's a very different issue than the laws themselves, which are clearly rooted in white supremacy and allowed this to go unchecked. Again, that's what I'm hoping he'll address in earnest, because to me that's what needs to happen next.

Biden's statement and those of AOC and Kaepernick aren't mutually exclusive.

nra is a terrorist group.

> This was one court case.

It was one court case that highlighted the injustices of our justice system.

> He did say that he was saddened by the results, but that the jury system worked and we have to respect that.

I think it would have been better if Biden had said that we have to respect the jury's decision for now, but we need to address the problems that have been baked into our justice system. To go back your original claim about what any president should do, I think the President should lead, even if that means saying that our legal system is broken.

...but that would undermine the very system that arrived them where they are and keeps them in power

Sure, but how are you going to fix the thing if you don't acknowledge the thing is broken?

There's a classic meme that fits Biden's response yesterday. It goes like this:

No, dude, it's not fine. It's not fine at all.

It was essentially a non-statement. More nothingness from sleepy joe.

Rittenhouse's rabid fans will probably elect him to congress after he writes his books and makes a straight-to-tv movie.

yay

Folks need to quit pretending/hoping that Biden is a Liberal. 

I don't think it was "nothingness." In fact, I think it was a very important statement to make.

The verdict was just yesterday and there's a ton of work to be done. I'm reserving judgment until I see if he acts or not, and Im willing to give him more than 24 hours.

Systemic change will not come from within the system.

Sleepy joe has been influencing and/or driving  policies in Washington since before I was born.

recognizing, of course; that this was never a federal case, and the outcome is one jury's interpretation of *Wisconsin* law.

Fuck biden. Never been a huge fan <<<

This

>>Most likely had this trial taken place in Dane County with Dane County jurors, Kyle would be blubbering in prison right now. 

>>If the trial were held in Dane County/Madison or Timbucktoo is irrelevant. If someone gets popped for Cannabis in KS, they cannot reasonably expect the trial to be held in CA, for example. 

I failed to write that if he had traveled to Madison instead of Kenosha, his outcome may have been different. He lives in IL and mad a choice to drive to Kenosha and participate. I may be wrong, but I don't believe sweet Kyle did any legal research regarding WI or Kenosha County law before he put the keys in the ignition. He's lucky beyond belief right now, but then again, OJ walked. The power of a jury. 

on another note, Kyle is now free to pursue his education and training in.....................................................................Nursing. Yes, Nursing. 

first job interview:

I see you did well in school, high gpa and flying colors. Tell me about some defining moments in your life where you realized you wanted to make a career of caring for others.

Boo Hoooooo, Poor Biden Haters. You Can't Always Get What You Want.

Maybe you should have gotten off your fat lazy stoned assez and made something of yourself and try running for office.

Joe Biden = the ONLY candidate that beats trump. Not Hillary, not Bernie, not yo Mama. 

I agree, Joe....and thanks for clarifying.

Focus, people.

Fuck Rittenhouse.  May he bleed out on the floor of some bar's shitter while some Proud Boys are buying a round in his name.

Criticizing what Biden does and doesn't do doesn't make someone a hater.

I know, somehow this became about Biden, because he didn't say what his haters wanted him to say.

Biden, Schmiden.  My cat would have beaten the former president in the last general election.

He certainly isn't running again in 2024, so let's just hope Susan Rice or whoever else is running the show doesn't fuck things up too much before then. 

In the meantime, a new slogan emerged last night:   ACAK  (All Cops Are Kyles).

> He certainly isn't running again in 2024,

Don't be so sure.

Biden and aides tell allies he is running in 2024 amid growing Democratic fears

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-reelection-2024/2021/11/20...

can someone fill me in on why people feel so strongly that the verdict was wrong?

i have not been super invested in following this and feel like maybe i am missing some details here, but from what ive heard so far, rittenhouse's possession of the gun was legal due to a technicality pertaining to a poorly written law, and the three people he shot were all posing significant and active threats to him - one chasing him and trying to get his gun, one trying to beat him with a skateboard, and one actually pointing a pistol at him.

now obviously, i do not want to live in a society where it is OK for a 17 year old(or really anyone) to go to a political protest carrying an AR15 or any kind of gun, and of course rittenhouses decision to go to the protest with a gun, for any reason, is a terrible choice to make, but it seems like if his possession of the firearm was technically legal, and the weapon was used in self defense according to both video evidence and testimony of one of the victims, shouldnt the law be enforced how it is written, rather than being enforced by what people think the law *should* say, and by unprovable inferences about his intentions or political affiliation? what am i missing here?

Rittenhouse claimed that he traveled from Illinois to Wisconsin because he wanted to protect a car dealership from being vandalized. To my knowledge, authorities in Wisconsin had not called on citizens to mobilize for the purpose of protecting the property of others, so Rittenhouse can be seen as a vigilante because of his actions. The Cornell Legal Information Institute notes that "Vigilante justice often describes the actions of a single person or group of people who claim to enforce the law but lack the legal authority to do so."

I'm not a lawyer, but it seems to me that Rittenhouse's argument that he was defending himself ignores the fact that he was engaged in an illegal act at the time he killed two people and wounded another. It seems to me that any actions that followed Rittenhouse's assuming the role of a vigilante police force should also be seen as illegal.

Had Rittenhouse not traveled to Wisconsin as a vigilante, he would not have found himself in harm's way and found it necessary to take the lives of others to defend himself. But from what I've read about this trial, the prosecution did not establish Rittehhouse's vigilantism, and I wonder why that is.

He killed the first VICTIM under fuzzy circumstances and was being chased for that act when he killed another guy whom was trying to stop him by hitting him with a skateboard and injured another also trying to stop him for the first 1 or 2. I am also not privy to all of the evidence presented but it seems odd at best that the courts/jury in the jurisdiction have sided with an underage punk's version of self-defense, especially in light of him traveling across state lines essentially looking for trouble.

Through all of this, he has become a hero of the far-right as an antedote to the BLM protests that really got under their skin which also, unfortunately, some turning violent and  illegally destructive in the process which only feeds that backlash narrative. Whenever the Jan 6 riot comes into question, those present and/or in support of it immaturely point to said BLM marches as some sort of justified counter-action. Opinions and perspectives widely vary so.....

The Cornell Legal Information Institute notes that "Vigilante justice often describes the actions of a single person or group of people who claim to enforce the law but lack the legal authority to do so."

couldnt that also include neighborhood watch groups or similar neighborhood patrols that are often found in neighborhoods all over the country? 

is simply intending to be a vigilante illegal under federal or wisconsin law?

FL and likely other states (WI, TX, AZ, GA, etc?) have since passed laws whereby it is "OK" to mow down with vehicles or otherwise incapacitate street protestors so buckle up for many more similar events and cases rolling up to courts. Fucked times in 'merika.

> neighborhood watch groups or similar neighborhood patrols

My understanding is that watch groups and patrols observe, but do not intervene. They contact the authorities when they see something they think is out of sorts.

> is simply intending to be a vigilante illegal under federal or wisconsin law?

I doubt it, if only because intent is very difficult to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt or otherwise. But the Rittenhouse case isn't about his intent; it's about his actions.

> traveling across state lines essentially looking for trouble

That's the key to this thing for me, Strawbud. Had Kyle stayed home like he was supposed to, none of this would've ever happened.

What about that Zimmerman "neighborhood watch" asshole in FL?

As I recall, Zimmerman argued that he was protecting his own property and that of his neighbors, not the property of someone he didn't know in the next state over.

>>>why people feel so strongly

It's not necessarily whether the verdict was legally supported, although you have to wonder how someone with a high powered rifle can kill an unarmed man and claim self defense.

It's more that the legal system allowed this punk to do what he did and walk away a hero, and if that is ok under the law, then the problem is with the system itself.  That is why we protest.

SNL nailed it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPUQxxLBDfc&t=63

>>>Had Kyle stayed home like he was supposed to, none of this would've ever happened.
 

Mommy drove him.  She should be included in the civil suits to come.

> Mommy drove him. 

That's been circulating on liberal media, I think D.L. Hughley might have initiated it, but my understanding is it's not correct. Kyle drove himself.