A few hours ago a US court acquitted a young man of premeditated murder charges after he shot two people during an anti-racism demonstration and this has attracted a lot of mixed reactions from so many people.
Kyle Rittenhouse was also acquitted of all the accusations attributed to him, justifying its ruling by stating that he was in a position of self-defense.
The young man reportedly shot an anti-apartheid demonstration, killing two and injuring a third in Kenosha, Wisconsin on August 25, 2020. During this trial, which has sparked widespread political division, the defendant’s defense said he feared for his life while prosecutors said Kyle went out that night looking for trouble.
And US National Guard forces were sent to Kenosha at that time amid fears that the unrest would widen.
US President Joe Biden urged Americans to “peacefully express their views,” saying, “While the outcome of this trial generates anger and anxiety for many Americans, including myself, we must admit that the jury has had its say.”
Kyle Rittenhouse killed Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Hooper, 26, and shot Gage Grosskretz, wounding him. It should be noted that Rittenhouse and all those who were shot were white.
Rittenhouse has been charged with five counts, including one count of premeditated murder, which carries the death penalty.
A jury of 12 people, seven women, and five men were responsible for deciding the fate of the accused in this case after deliberations that lasted for more than three days between them.
While the verdict was pronounced, the accused broke down in tears and almost passed out while hearing the words “not guilty” read five times.
And just two days before Rittenhouse arrived in Kenosha last year, riots erupted in the city’s streets after the police shot and paralyzed a black citizen, Jacob Blake.
The accused came to Wisconsin, and the city of Kenosha in particular, last year, two days before those events, with a semi-automatic firearm that he said he was carrying to protect his home from disturbances. Jurors watched a video documenting what happened before and after each time the accused shot.
In his closing arguments, Rittenhouse’s lawyer said his client “was trying to help those around him and reacted to those who were trying to attack him”.
But prosecutors questioned the reason why the accused violated the curfew in a city where he was not a resident and “pretend to protect” people and property he knew nothing about. That case has been the subject of a polarizing debate over gun rights in the United States.
Some see Rittenhouse as a hero, who says he tried to keep the peace during violent protests. On the other hand, some were horrified to see the heavily armed teenager amid the turmoil.
The BBC’s Naomi Iqbal, who was in court on Friday, said she saw a group of cars passing by and honking loudly, amid chants of “Release Kyle” and “We like Section Two” – the legal provision that allows Americans to own property. and take up arms.
In front of the court, Jacob’s uncle Blake stood in tears, expressing his shock after hearing this verdict.
Hopper’s parents, one of the victims of the Rittenhouse shooting, were also there as they asserted that there was no “accountability” for their son’s killer.
The victim’s parents said: “This ruling sends an unacceptable message that armed civilians can appear in any city and provoke violence and then use the danger they created to justify shooting people in the street.”
But Rittenhouse’s lawyer said his client “wishes none of that happened” and that he just wanted to save his life.
A spokesman for the Rittenhouse family; David Hancock, told CBS News they were expecting an acquittal, adding that they are now in an “undisclosed location.
And the reactions of politicians to the court’s decision came to reflect the divisions among them over this judge.
Mandela Barnes, the Democratic deputy governor of Wisconsin, was among those who denounced Rittenhouse’s acquittal.
“Over the past few weeks, a lot of people were afraid of what we just saw,” Barnes said.
He added: “The presumption of innocence until proven guilty is what we should have expected from our justice system, but this standard is not always equally applied. We have seen many black people killed. Yet they are brought to trial after their death while the judge ultimately demands Kyle’s innocence.”
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio even went so far as to describe the ruling in a tweet on his account on the social networking site as “disgusting”.
But Republicans, including Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson, welcomed the court’s decision.
“Justice has been done, and I hope that everyone accepts the sentence, that everyone remains peaceful, and let the Kenosha community heal its wounds and rebuild itself,” Johnson was quoted by the French news agency AFP.
Former state governor Scott Walker tweeted, indicating his support for the court’s decision, saying: “All of us who know what happened in Kenosha last year were assuming that the verdict would be like this. Fortunately, that was the opinion of the jury as well“.
