The event post, titled "Armed Citizens to Protect our Lives and Property," was picked up and redistributed by InfoWars. Mathewson had previously formed the Kenosha Guard in response to the George Floyd protests earlier that year.
On August 25, former Kenosha alderman Kevin Mathewson put out a call on the Facebook page of the Kenosha Guard militia group for "patriots willing to take up arms and defend" Kenosha. Following a resurgence in protests that were part of the Black Lives Matter movement after other high-profile killings of African-Americans by police officers in 2020, the protests in Kenosha included rallies, marches, property damage, arson, and clashes with police between August 23 and September 1. On August 23, 2020, protests erupted in Kenosha after the shooting of Jacob Blake, an African-American man who was shot seven times (and hit four times) by a Kenosha police officer and became paralyzed from the waist down. Main articles: Shooting of Jacob Blake and Kenosha unrest
#WHERE WAS SHAURYA MOVIE SHOT TRIAL#
An Economist/ YouGov poll conducted during the trial found that two-thirds of Republicans thought Rittenhouse should be acquitted, while three-quarters of Democrats thought he should be convicted. Gun control advocates proclaimed fears that the verdict would embolden vigilantism. Multiple left-wing politicians and figures criticized the verdict as a miscarriage of justice, saying that the acquittal was emblematic of racial double standards in the American justice system. Multiple right-wing politicians and figures welcomed Rittenhouse's acquittal, stating that the shootings were self-defense, while President Joe Biden called for the jury's verdict to be respected. Public sentiment of the shootings was polarized and media coverage both polarized and politicized.
Judge Bruce Schroeder dismissed the unlawful possession charge and the curfew violation charge for being legally unsupported, and a unanimous jury found Rittenhouse not guilty of the remaining charges. During his trial from November 1 to 19, 2021, his lawyer argued his actions were self-defense. Rittenhouse was charged with two counts of homicide, one count of attempted homicide, two counts of reckless endangerment, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm, and one count of curfew violation. West Allis resident Gaige Grosskreutz then approached Rittenhouse and pointed a handgun at him, after which Rittenhouse wounded Grosskreutz by shooting him once in the right arm. Rittenhouse shot Huber once in the chest, killing him. Silver Lake resident Anthony Huber then struck Rittenhouse in the left shoulder, neck and head with a skateboard and attempted to take his rifle. Rittenhouse shot at him twice from the ground and missed. Rittenhouse tripped and fell to the ground after being struck twice, where he was jump kicked by another man.
Rittenhouse then ran down the street while being pursued by a crowd of at least a dozen people. Rittenhouse shot Rosenbaum four times at close range, killing him. McGinnis testified at trial that Rosenbaum lunged at Rittenhouse and tried to take his rifle. Racine resident Joshua Ziminski fired a shot into the air nearby, then Rittenhouse turned towards Rosenbaum, who was unarmed. Īfter an earlier confrontation with Kenosha resident Joseph Rosenbaum, journalist Richard McGinnis saw Rittenhouse being chased by Rosenbaum in a parking lot.
Rittenhouse said he was there to protect a car dealership from being vandalized and to provide medical aid. Black and Rittenhouse had joined a group of armed men in Kenosha who said they were there to protect businesses. Rittenhouse was armed with a semi-automatic, AR-15 style rifle that he had asked his friend, Dominick Black, to purchase for him. Rittenhouse and the three men he shot were white. At trial Rittenhouse used the affirmative defense of self-defense and was acquitted of all charges. The shootings occurred during the protests, riots, and civil unrest that followed the shooting of a black man, Jacob Blake, by a white police officer. On August 25, 2020, Kyle Howard Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old from Antioch, Illinois, fatally shot two men and wounded another in Kenosha, Wisconsin.