Judge asks Rittenhouse prosecutor about look on his face
1:10
What we're covering
Kyle Rittenhouse, the armed Illinois teenager who killed two people and wounded another during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer, is on trial on homicide charges.
The case stems from Rittenhouse’s actions in the wake of protests related to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in August 2020. It’s a case that will test the distinction between self-defense and vigilante killings.
Our live coverage has ended for the day. Read up on the latest from Kenosha below.
12 Posts
Link Copied!
Here's what happened today in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial
With the jury out of the room, Assistant District Attorney James Kraus, right, Judge Bruce E. Schroeder, center, and defense attorney Corey Chirafisi, rear left, look over a video monitor to examine photographic evidence during a dispute over the reliability of enlarged digital images during Kyle Rittenhouse's trial at the Kenosha County Courthouse in Kenosha, Wis., on Thursday, Nov. 11, 2021. Rittenhouse is accused of killing two people and wounding a third during a protest over police brutality in Kenosha last year. (Mark Hertzberg/Pool Photo via AP)
(Mark Hertzberg/Pool/AP)
The defense rested its case Thursday in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, a teenager who faces charges that he killed Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz using an AR-15-style rifle during protests last summer following the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
The scene in court Thursday was tamer compared to yesterday.
Judge Bruce Schroeder asked the jury twice on Wednesday to leave the room before sharply admonishing prosecutor Thomas Binger for his line of questioning.
The first incident related to questions about Rittenhouse’s post-arrest silence, and the second was about an incident two weeks before the shootings that the judge said would not be permitted into evidence.
Here’s what happened in court Thursday:
Defense calls witnesses: First on the stand first on the eighth day of testimony was use-of-force expert John Black, who testified that less than three seconds passed between the time a protester fired a shot and Rittenhouse opened fire with his rifle in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last year. Brittni Bray, a Kenosha police officer, testified about collecting shell casings the night of the deadly shooting.
Videographer takes the stand: Drew Hernandez, who shot video of the protests, testified that Rittenhouse tried to deescalate tensions at times the night of the shooting. He told the jury the first person to be shot was acting “physically aggressive” even before his encounter with Rittenhouse. Rittenhouse testified most of the day Wednesday and said that he acted in self-defense when he used an AR-15-style rifle to fatally shoot a man who had threatened him, threw a plastic bag at him and chased him. “I didn’t do anything wrong. I defended myself,” he testified.
Revisiting Wednesday’s heated exchanges: Yesterday’s heated exchange between Schroeder and Binger came up Thursday with the prosecutor saying, “yesterday, as I said, I was under the court’s ire” and Schroeder cutting him off saying, “you know, I don’t want to talk about” it. “I think it’s a fundamental fairness issue, your honor, if I’m being held to obey the court’s orders, I’m asking that the defense be held to that too,” Binger persisted. “I was talking yesterday about the Constitution of the United States and how the Supreme Court has interpreted it for 50 years. That’s not what we are talking about here today,” the judge replied.
Closing arguments: The defense rested their case earlier Thursday afternoon. During eight days of testimony in the trial, jurors heard from 31 different witnesses. Schroeder told jurors that closing arguments and jury instructions in the trial are expected Monday. Each side will have 2.5 hours total for their closing arguments.
Link Copied!
Testimony concludes in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, closing arguments set for Monday
From CNN's Brad Parks
Kyle Rittenhouse and his attorney Corey Chirafisi listen during his trial in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Thursday.
(Sean Krajacic/The Kenosha News/Pool/AP)
Testimony concluded on Thursday in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse after prosecutors called only one rebuttal witnesses.
The defense rested their case earlier Thursday afternoon.
During eight days of testimony in the trial, jurors heard from 31 different witnesses.
Judge Bruce Schroeder told jurors that closing arguments and jury instructions in the trial are expected Monday. Each side will have 2.5 hours total for their closing arguments.
Prosecutors told the judge on Thursday afternoon that they do intend to ask for “lesser included” charges to be submitted to the jury, but that decision had not been finalized.
Some context: Rittenhouse faces charges that he killed Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz using an AR-15-style rifle during protests on August 25, 2020, that followed the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
Rittenhouse took the stand on Wednesday and testified before the jury that he acted in self-defense. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. If he is convicted of the most serious charge against him, he faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison.
Link Copied!
Defense rests in trial of Kyle Rittenhouse
Kyle Rittenhouse, left, and defense attorney Corey Chirafisi confer during Rittenhouse's trial in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Thursday.
(Mark Hertzberg/Pool/AP)
The defense rested on Thursday in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse.
Rittenhouse faces charges that he killed Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum and wounded Gaige Grosskreutz using an AR-15-style rifle during protests on Aug. 25, 2020, that followed the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
Rittenhouse took the stand on Wednesday and testified before the jury that he acted in self-defense. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. If he is convicted of the most serious charge against him, he faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison.
Defense attorneys called 10 witnesses to testify.
Link Copied!
Court is back in session
Court is back in session and Kenosha County Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger is questioning Drew Hernandez, who shot video of the protests.
Hernandez has testified that Kyle Rittenhouse tried to deescalate tensions at times on the night of the shooting. He told the jury the first person to be shot was acting “physically aggressive,” even before his encounter with Rittenhouse.
Link Copied!
The court is taking a lunch break
Court is in recess for lunch in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse. The trial is set to resume around 2 p.m. ET.
The defense team has been calling witnesses today. So far, they called use-of-force expert John Black, Brittni Bray with the Kenosha police and Drew Hernandez.
Rittenhouse, the armed Illinois teenager who killed two people and wounded another during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer, is on trial on homicide charges. Yesterday, he testified in his own defense.
Ahead of today’s testimony, Judge Bruce Schroeder told the court it would be “ideal” if the trial finished tomorrow, but added, “we’ll see what happens.” Yesterday at the end of court, he told the jury he expected to finish the case by early next week.
Link Copied!
Rittenhouse judge asks prosecutor about his expression as they discuss Wednesday's heated exchange
From CNN’s Carma Hassan
Kenosha County Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger, sitting left, speaks to Judge Bruce Schroeder.
(Pool)
Kenosha County Judge Bruce Schroeder asked the jury to leave the room while he and the attorneys talked over the prosecution’s objection to specific portions of video analysis from John Black, the defense’s witness, on Thursday, saying it was outside the court’s order.
“It certainly was my impression that we were talking about video of the entire episode and … certainly in my mind is not limited to the specific numbers on this observation point list that you’re talking about,” Schroeder said to Kenosha County Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger.
“I have to say, your honor, yesterday, I was the target of your ire for disregarding your orders. Today the defense is disregarding your order,” Binger replied.
Yesterday’s heated exchange between the judge and Binger came up again a few minutes later with the prosecutor saying, “yesterday, as I said, I was under the court’s ire” and Schroeder cutting him off saying, “you know, I don’t want to talk about” it.
“I was talking yesterday about the Constitution of the United States and how the Supreme Court has interpreted it for 50 years. That’s not what we are talking about here today,” the judge replied.
Court resumed after the discussion and the video will be shown in court.
Link Copied!
Defense team calls use-of-force expert to testify
(Pool)
Kyle Rittenhouse’s defense team just called Dr. John Black to testify. Black is a use-of-force expert.
Rittenhouse, the armed Illinois teenager who killed two people and wounded another during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer, is on trial on homicide charges. Yesterday, he testified in his own defense.
Link Copied!
Judge says it would be "ideal" if trial finished tomorrow
(Pool)
Ahead of today’s testimony in the Kyle Rittenhouse case, Judge Bruce Schroeder told the court this morning it would be “ideal” if the trial finished tomorrow, but added, “we’ll see what happens.”
Yesterday at the end of court, he told the jury he expected to finish the case by early next week.
Rittenhouse’s defense team is continuing to call witnesses today. Testimony is expected to begin soon.
Link Copied!
Testimony resumes in Kyle Rittenhouse trial
The trial of Kyle Rittenhouse resumed Thursday morning in Wisconsin.
Rittenhouse, now 18, is charged with five felonies in connection with a deadly shooting last summer during unrest in Kenosha. Yesterday, he testified in his own defense.
The defense will continue to call witnesses today.
Link Copied!
Rittenhouse faces homicide charges. Here's what you need to know about the summer 2020 shooting.
From CNN's Eric Levenson
Kyle Rittenhouse, right, watch an aerial video of the moments where he shot Jospeh Rosenbaum on Aug. 25, 2020, during his trail at the Kenosha County Courthouse on Wednesday.
(Sean Krajacic/Kenosha News/AP/Pool)
Kyle Rittenhouse, the armed Illinois teenager who killed two people and wounded another during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, last summer, went on trialMonday on homicide charges.
Here’s a recap of how the night of Aug. 25, 2020, unfolded:
The violence in Kenosha, a city of about 100,000 people, came amid a tense summer of protests and unrest as masses of people denounced how American police treated Black people.
Rittenhouse, from nearby Antioch, had an affinity for guns and supported “Blue Lives Matter” and then-President Donald Trump, according to his social media accounts.
On Aug. 23, 2020, a Kenosha Police officer shot Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, multiple times in the back. The shooting was captured on cellphone video and quickly spread online, leading to outrage and protests as well as violence and destruction over the next few days.
Some people – including a number who did not live in Kenosha – took the matter of safety into their own hands. Rittenhouse was among them.
Wearing a green T-shirt and a backward baseball cap, the armed Rittenhouse walked the streets of the city on the night of Aug. 25 with a group of armed men, video and photos from the protests show. Hours after curfew, Rittenhouse was walking down the streets near a car dealership holding what investigators later determined to be “a Smith & Wesson AR-15 style .223 rifle,” the criminal complaint against him states.
The complaint says Rittenhouse clashed with people gathered near the car dealership for reasons not specified.
Rosenbaum was unarmed and threw an object that appeared to be a plastic bag at him and missed, according to the complaint. Rosenbaum and Rittenhouse moved across the parking lot and appeared to be in close proximity when loud bangs suddenly rang out and Rosenbaum fell to the ground, according to the complaint.
As Rosenbaum lay on the ground, Rittenhouse made a call on his cellphone and said, “I just killed somebody” as he ran away, the complaint alleges. A journalist who was following the suspect and the victim at the time provided investigators with more details on what happened. He told investigators the man shot was trying to get the suspect’s gun, according to the complaint.
Another video shows the suspect running from the scene followed by people in hot pursuit.
Rittenhouse tripped and fell as people chased him down, and as he lay on the ground, a person identified as Huber approached him with a skateboard in his right hand, the complaint says. Huber appeared to reach Rittenhouse’s gun with one hand as the skateboard hit the teen in the shoulder, the complaint states, and Rittenhouse then shot Huber.
Rittenhouse then pointed his gun at a third man, later identified as Grosskreutz, who was holding a handgun, the complaint states. He was shot in the right arm and took off in the opposite direction screaming for a medic while the defendant walked away, the complaint alleges.
Rittenhouse left the shooting scene still armed and walked toward officers with his hands up, but police passed by him without arresting him, video shows. He ultimately went home and turned himself in at his local police department the next morning.
CNN’s Paul P. Murphy and Faith Karimi contributed to this report.
Link Copied!
The Rittenhouse trial is set to resume soon. The judge expects it to wrap up next week.
From CNN's Brad Parks
At the end of court on Wednesday, Judge Bruce Schroeder told members of the Kyle Rittenhouse jury that he expected to finish the case by early next week.
Before speaking with the jury, defense attorneys indicated to Schroeder they have three witnesses left to call in the case.
Schroeder asked prosecutors if they expected to call any rebuttal witnesses after the defense rests their case.
Prosecutor Thomas Binger replied, “I don’t think it’s going to be extensive, but we do reserve the right to call…”
“Understood,” Schroeder interjected.
After polling the attorneys outside the presence of the jury, the judge also indicated there will be no court this upcoming weekend.
Defense attorneys said that Dr. John Black is expected to be the first witness for the defense called Thursday morning.
Court is in recess until 10 a.m. ET today.
Link Copied!
Here's what happened Wednesday in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial
Kyle Rittenhouse, the armed Illinois teenager who killed two people and wounded another during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, took the stand Wednesday to testify in his own defense in his trial on homicide charges.
Here’s what happened in court:
Rittenhouse says he did nothing wrong: Rittenhouse defended his actions in Kenosha in the wake of the protests related to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in August 2020, telling the court, “I didn’t do anything wrong. I defended myself.” The teenager also said he didn’t intend to kill anyone, but agreed he used “deadly force” that night.
Emotional testimony: Rittenhouse broke down on the stand while describing the night of the shooting prompting the judge to call a 10-minute recess
Rittenhouse says he was “ambushed: Rittenhouse testified that Joseph Rosenbaum, who he shot and killed, had threatened to kill him and said he “came out from behind the car and ambushed me” before the shooting. He said later in his testimony that he believed Rosenbaum “tried to take my gun,” adding, “if he would have taken my gun he would’ve used it against me” and “killed me.”
Motion for a mistrial: Defense attorney Corey Chirafisi said in court this afternoon that the defense is making a motion for a mistrial with prejudice, claiming the prosecutor, Thomas Binger, committed “what amounts to prosecutorial overreach.” The judge said he would take the motion under advisement.
Judge admonishes the prosecutor: Twice during cross-examination, Schroeder asked the jury to leave the courtroom and then sharply admonished Binger for his line of questioning.
