Kyle Rittenhouse Jury Selected – Trial Begins Tuesday

[deb]

If this is the photo going into evidence I pray the jurors have common sense and sees what I see...nothing!

That should never have been admitted into evidence.

[catfish1957]

Sure. They could have a protest in front of his house with protestors as peaceful as those poor murder victims he's been trying to vindicate in court.

How this can be allowed is disgusting.  Just another example of having an ideological civil war may be the only way to resovlve this.

[mountaineer]

If this is the photo going into evidence I pray the jurors have common sense and sees what I see...nothing!

That's just it. The jury has to evaluate this one grain of evidence, along with the rest of the mountain of evidence, including testimony. How many times have we heard jurors questioned about a particular piece of evidence, once the trial is over, and they say they didn't believe that evidence or a particular person's testimony for a moment. Yes, pray for common sense.

[Sighlass]

Anyone have the "enhanced" photo the prosecution is presenting as evidence for me to view... I want to see just exactly what they contorted to be used against Kyle.... (with Kyle using his other shoulder instead of his natural stance). I am just curious and can't seem to find the pic.

[Elderberry]

[Elderberry]

Rittenhouse Trial Day 9: Prosecution Big Win On “Provocation” Jury Instruction Saves Chance At Conviction

Legal Insurrection by Andrew Branca Friday, November 12, 2021 at 06:58pm

https://legalinsurrection.com/2021/11/rittenhouse-trial-day-9-prosecutions-big-win-on-provocation-saves-a-chance-at-conviction/

Lacking any factual rebuttal to self-defense, the State will argue that Kyle Rittenhouse was a “provoker with intent” eliminating self-defense privilege under Wisconsin law that cannot be regained by withdrawal from the fight.

Today was the ninth day of the trial by which ADA Thomas Binger is seeking to have Kyle Rittenhouse convicted and sentenced to life in prison for having shot three men (two fatally) the night of August 25, 2020, in Kenosha WI, when the city was suffering a tsunami of rioting, looting, and arson following the lawful shooting of a knife-wielding Jacob Blake by Kenosha police officers.

Today the parties argued over what instructions should be given to the jury for their use in deliberating the guilt (or not) of Kyle Rittenhouse for any criminal charges for which he’s currently on trial.

Naturally, the jury was not present for this discussion.  The jury will return to court on Monday morning, at which point the judge will give them the final set of jury instructions, the State will present its closing argument, the defense will present its closing, and then the State will have a rebuttal argument.

Big Win for the Prosecution:  Saved by Judge Allowing Provocation Instructions

Much of the day’s argument over jury instructions centered on the instructions dealing with the legal doctrine of provocation—and that’s because an attack through the doctrine of provocation is the only desperate hope the State has for overcoming Kyle’s powerful claim of self-defense and obtaining convictions on the use-of-force charges against him.

Of the six counts brought against Kyle Rittenhouse in this trial, five are use-of-force felonies (the other is the misdemeanor gun possession charge already discussed).  To each of those felony charges, Kyle has raised the legal defense of self-defense.  To convict on any of those, then, the State must disprove self-defense beyond a reasonable doubt.  How might the State do this, given that it has introduced little if any evidence attacking the core elements of Kyle’s self-defense?

By attacking Kyle’s claim of self-defense through the doctrine of provocation.

I expect the State’s central attack on Kyle’s core legal defense of self-defense to come in the form of a narrative of provocation with intent.

Good News for Defense: Judge Adopts Gun Charge Instruction They Drafted

The biggest jury instruction win for the defense was on the misdemeanor gun possession charge, Count 6 in the criminal complaint.  The standard jury instruction for this charge would almost certainly have meant an automatic conviction for Kyle, for reasons I explain at length here:  The Injustice of the Gun Charge Against Kyle Rittenhouse

Instead of that standard jury instruction, however, the judge agreed to accept a jury instruction drafted by the defense that includes as an option the exception that relieves Kyle of criminal liability for that gun possession.

The Criminal Charges and the Jury Instructions Approved for Them

The criminal complaint against Kyle has six counts.  Five of these are use-of-force felony counts, and one is the misdemeanor gun possession count.  Today the parties argued in court over the specific jury instructions to be read to the jury for each of those counts.

The parties also argued over where the jury would be permitted to consider lesser included offenses for a particular count in the complaint. (If you’re unfamiliar with lesser included offenses, I discuss that concept below).

Ultimately the Judge decided upon what final instructions the jury will be read on Monday morning, just before closing arguments, after which the jury will begin to deliberate, applying those jury instructions to the facts of the case as they believe those facts to have been proven or disproven.

It is worth noting that the jury can only convict on charges for which they receive a jury instruction, so as you might imagine the defense was arguing against many of the instructions the State was asking for.  Overall the defense won a few of these arguments and lost a few.

Here I’ll simply list the Counts of the criminal complaint and provide the jury instructions approved for each immediately below each count.

Count 1: First Degree Reckless Homicide (Joseph Rosenbaum)

1020 First Degree Reckless Homicide

Count 2: First-Degree Recklessly Endangering Safety (Richard McGinnis)

1345 First degree reckless endangerment

1347 Second-degree reckless endangerment

Count 3: First Degree Intentional Homicide (Anthony Huber)

1010 First Degree Intentional Homicide

1016 First Degree Intentional Homicide: Self-Defense

Count 4: Attempt First Degree Intentional Homicide (Gaige Grosskreutz)

1070 Attempted First Degree Intentional Homicide

1072 Attempted First Degree Intentional Homicide: Self-Defense

1020 First Degree Reckless Homicide

Count 5: First Degree Recklessly Endangering Safety (“Jump Kick Man”)

1345 First degree reckless endangerment

1347 Second degree reckless endangerment

Count 6:  Possession of a Dangerous Weapon by a Person Under 18

Much more at link.

[mystery-ak]

Gaige Grosskreutz Contradicts Sworn Testimony on CNN: I Had ‘My Arms Up’ When Rittenhouse Shot Me

Robert Kraychik 12 Nov 2021

Gaige Grosskreutz, a witness in the murder trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, contradicted sworn testimony he delivered under oath in an interview with CNN aired on Thursday.

On Monday, Grosskreutz confirmed under cross-examination by Rittenhouse attorney Corey Chirafisi that Rittenhouse shot him after he advanced upon Rittenhouse with his firearm pointed at the defendant.

Grosskreutz provided a contrary description of events leading up to him being shot by Rittenhouse in an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, however, in which he denied pointing his gun at Rittenhouse prior to being shot.

https://twitter.com/AC360/status/1458970737792987142

more
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2021/11/12/gaige-grosskreutz-contradicts-sworn-testimony-on-cnn-i-had-my-arms-up-when-rittenhouse-shot-me/

[Hoodat]

Gaige Grosskreutz Contradicts Sworn Testimony on CNN: I Had ‘My Arms Up’ When Rittenhouse Shot Me

And naturally, CNN confronted him by pointing out all the evidence that contradicted his statement, right?

[Sighlass]

@Elderberry Thank You ....

[Elderberry]

Kyle Rittenhouse's mother slams Joe Biden for 'defam[ing]' her son in exclusive 'Hannity' interview

By Hannah Grossman | Fox News 11/12/2021

https://www.foxnews.com/media/wendy-rittenhouse-slams-joe-biden-defaming-kyle-rittenhouse-hannity

Wendy Rittenhouse: My son is not a White supremacist, he is not a racist

Kyle Rittenhouse's mother joined "Hannity" for an exclusive interview Thursday in which she slammed Joe Biden for casting her son as a White supremacist one year ago.

"When I saw that I was shocked, I was angry. President Biden don't [sic] know my son whatsoever, and he's not a White supremacist. He's not a racist. And [Biden] did that for the votes. And I was so angry for a while at him and what he did to my son, he defamed him," Wendy Rittenhouse said.

Wendy drove her son to the Antioch police station to report he was involved in a Kenosha shooting, according to Rittenhouse testimony.

In Kenosha, protests and riots erupted after the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Blake, who was 29 years old at the time, was paralyzed from the waist down as a result of the injuries he sustained during the encounter.

More at link.

[skeeter]

And naturally, CNN confronted him by pointing out all the evidence that contradicted his statement, right?

Or that he sang a different tune while under oath and at risk of perjuring himself.

[mountaineer]

[mystery-ak]

November 13, 2021
One fuzzy drone image may send Kyle Rittenhouse to prison
By Andrea Widburg

Up until Friday, the Kyle Rittenhouse trial was very clear: easily understood videos and witness testimony (including testimony from the prosecution witnesses) showed that Kyle, despite trying hard to avoid conflict, was attacked by a crazed child rapist, whom Kyle shot as the rapist was grabbing Kyle's gun, at which point a mob went after Kyle.  He then shot and killed a domestic abuser trying to bash his head in with a skateboard, and shot and wounded a felon aiming a loaded, illegal gun at his head.  On Thursday, however, the court allowed prosecutors to enter into evidence a fuzzy photo from a late-produced drone, an image prosecutors argue shows Kyle "provoking" the attacks against him.  Provocation destroys Kyle's assertion that he acted in self-defense.

Andrew Branca explains how well the prosecution did on Friday.  The "unicorn" evidence that the prosecutors successfully fought to get admitted is the drone footage that they just coincidentally found at the last minute before the trial.  According to the prosecution, an incredibly fuzzy photo that was computer-enhanced (meaning that A.I. made "educated" guesses about where pixels should go) shows Kyle pointing his gun at Joshua Ziminski, who fired the first shot that saw Rosenbaum, who had earlier threatened to kill Kyle, chase the boy.

more
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2021/11/one_fuzzy_drone_image_may_send_kyle_rittenhouse_to_prison.html

[mystery-ak]

Kyle Rittenhouse Prosecutors Caught Tampering
Evidence (Photos & Video)
Defiant America, by Mack Cogburn

 — 11/13/2021

The prosecution in the Kyle Rittenhouse Trial is caught TAMPERING with evidence, The Kyle Rittenhouse Trial has turned into a political show trial! The late stages of Kyle Rittenhouse’s murder trial in the shooting of three men highlighted the U.S. legal system’s constant debate over forensic technologies, even fundamental ideas taken for granted outside the courtroom. Rittenhouse’s defense team challenged Kenosha County prosecutors’ attempt to introduce enlarged images taken from drone video footage. Prosecutors said the images were a clear contradiction of Rittenhouse’s earlier testimony that he had not pointed his weapon at protesters prior to killing Joseph Rosenbaum.

more
https://defiantamerica.com/kyle-rittenhouse-prosecutors-caught-tampering-evidence-photos-video/

[mystery-ak]

By Julian Conradson
Published November 12, 2021 at 6:49pm


After having their entire case obliterated by video evidence and bombshell witness testimony all week – with some of the worst blows coming from their own ‘star’ witnesses – prosecutors for the state’s case against Kyle Rittenhouse finally came to the realization that their arguments had gotten them nowhere. In a shocking admission on Friday, the prosecution said that because of the evidence presented in the case “a reasonable jury or juror” could acquit Rittenhouse on the most serious charges that he faces. Even the least serious of the charges that Rittenhouse faces – illegal possession of a firearm – may be dismissed by the judge in the case.

more
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/11/moving-goalposts-kyle-rittenhouse-prosecution-pushes-multitude-lesser-crimes-last-ditch-attempt-secure-jail-time/

[skeeter]

By Julian Conradson
Published November 12, 2021 at 6:49pm


After having their entire case obliterated by video evidence and bombshell witness testimony all week – with some of the worst blows coming from their own ‘star’ witnesses – prosecutors for the state’s case against Kyle Rittenhouse finally came to the realization that their arguments had gotten them nowhere. In a shocking admission on Friday, the prosecution said that because of the evidence presented in the case “a reasonable jury or juror” could acquit Rittenhouse on the most serious charges that he faces. Even the least serious of the charges that Rittenhouse faces – illegal possession of a firearm – may be dismissed by the judge in the case.

more
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/11/moving-goalposts-kyle-rittenhouse-prosecution-pushes-multitude-lesser-crimes-last-ditch-attempt-secure-jail-time/

The kids gonna walk. Lessee if the left can manage to contain their teenage level passions

[Right_in_Virginia]

https://mobile.twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1459392647135744003

https://mobile.twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1459395130616684546

[catfish1957]

The kids gonna walk. Lessee if the left can manage to contain their teenage level passions

Not so sure after the fuzzy drone video is admissable. Here is my take and opinio after watching the past 4 days....


1. First-degree reckless homicide, use of a dangerous weapon-  70/30 Not Guilty.  Self Defense angle very effectively applied by Defense.  I understand this charge has an element were subject by show disregard for life.  If fuzzy wuzzy bullshit shot convinces that Kyle was the aggressor, he might have an issue. here.  I am thinking probably not


2. First-degree recklessly endangering safety, use of a dangerous weapon- 50/50 on this one.  I think this one might be the kicker, if the jury wants to make an example of Kyle.  And this is the most worrisome charge to me.


3. First-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon- 100/0 Not Guilty.  Overwhelming evidence that Kyle did was defending himself. By Day 2, you can pretty much tell that the Prosecution had given up on this option.

4. Attempted first-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon- 100/0 Not Guilty for same reason stated above.


5. First-degree recklessly endangering safety, use of a dangerous weapon-  60/40 Guilty- Thinking from an overall poltically middle like jury, I think the argument may be successful, of why an out of town kid would bring an AR-15 to a riot without some forethought it might be used. Again, not my opinion, but what the jury might be thinking.

6. Possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18-Pfffffff.  If the prosecution is pushing this misdemeanor charge at closing, I am thinking they think they have lost the boat.  If for some reason it is included...  100/0 Guilty, though I thought the prosecution made some good points, on the applicabilty aspects of this statute.
.

7. Failure to comply with an emergency order from state or local government-  100/0 Guilty See Weapons possession above. If this goes to the jury with any priority , the prosecution is going to look sillier than they already have.

I know we have a few lawyers here, so let me know if I might be off on this prognostication.  Again, just my take.

.

[Right_in_Virginia]

The kids gonna walk. Lessee if the left can manage to contain their teenage level passions

I like the way you think @skeeter   ....  But now factor  in the threats of jury doxxing,  the city blowing up (the Governor's activated the National Guard) and the media guilty drumbeat (this was an unsequestered jury).  Does any of this affect your view of the outcome?  (Serious question)

[Polly Ticks]

https://twitter.com/ScottAdamsSays/status/1459507415158702084

[skeeter]

I hope you're wrong @catfish1957. Whats the use in being allowed to open carry if you aren't allowed the right of self defense?

[skeeter]

I like the way you think @skeeter   ....  But now factor  in the threats of jury doxxing,  the city blowing up (the Governor's activated the National Guard) and the media guilty drumbeat (this was an unsequestered jury).  Does any of this affect your view of the outcome?  (Serious question)

I know... the way it should be doesn't necessarily equate to the way it is. That pretty much describes everything these days - through the looking glass. But, by God, I hope the right thing finally happens here.

[catfish1957]

I hope you're wrong @catfish1957. Whats the use in being allowed to open carry if you aren't allowed the right of self defense?

I hope I am too, but (again thinking like a moderate or left leaning juror) the concept of self defense loses a little value when you bring it to a race riot. Especially an AR 15, which some would argue is not exactly a defensive weapon.  (Again, not my opinion, just what the jurors may be saying or thinking)

My real thinking is I wish we had 10,000-20,000 Kyles in the summer of 2020.  The BLM and Antifa terrorist would have been a lot less bold.

[catfish1957]

I know... the way it should be doesn't necessarily equate to the way it is. That pretty much describes everything these days - through the looking glass. But, by God, I hope the right thing finally happens here.

The politicans in essence see this much like the Chauvin case......   Trump up the charges, and make an example of him.  I am betting better than 50/50 that there will be a guilty verdict on one of the lesser charges, and he will have to do prison time.   

Which wil be a sickening miscarrage of justice.   I also thought there may be an outiside chance we may have a pattiot in there and have a hung jury on some of these counts.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Not so sure after the fuzzy drone video is admissable. Here is my take and opinio after watching the past 4 days....


1. First-degree reckless homicide, use of a dangerous weapon-  70/30 Not Guilty.  Self Defense angle very effectively applied by Defense.  I understand this charge has an element were subject by show disregard for life.  If fuzzy wuzzy bullshit shot convinces that Kyle was the aggressor, he might have an issue. here.  I am thinking probably not


2. First-degree recklessly endangering safety, use of a dangerous weapon- 50/50 on this one.  I think this one might be the kicker, if the jury wants to make an example of Kyle.  And this is the most worrisome charge to me.


3. First-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon- 100/0 Not Guilty.  Overwhelming evidence that Kyle did was defending himself. By Day 2, you can pretty much tell that the Prosecution had given up on this option.

4. Attempted first-degree intentional homicide, use of a dangerous weapon- 100/0 Not Guilty for same reason stated above.


5. First-degree recklessly endangering safety, use of a dangerous weapon-  60/40 Guilty- Thinking from an overall poltically middle like jury, I think the argument may be successful, of why an out of town kid would bring an AR-15 to a riot without some forethought it might be used. Again, not my opinion, but what the jury might be thinking.

6. Possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18-Pfffffff.  If the prosecution is pushing this misdemeanor charge at closing, I am thinking they think they have lost the boat.  If for some reason it is included...  100/0 Guilty, though I thought the prosecution made some good points, on the applicabilty aspects of this statute.
.

7. Failure to comply with an emergency order from state or local government-  100/0 Guilty See Weapons possession above. If this goes to the jury with any priority , the prosecution is going to look sillier than they already have.

I know we have a few lawyers here, so let me know if I might be off on this prognostication.  Again, just my take.

.

What worries me is if the jury believes the drumbeat that the kid shouldn't have been there, that he brought his rifle looking for trouble AND a handful believe the fuzzy photo shows he was provoking the "protestors"  --- then I'd move #s 1 and 2 to 100% guilty and #s 3 and 4 to 70/30 guilty.

I hope the defense doesn't spend a lot of time on Monday talking about pixels ---- I hope they hang that photo around the necks of the prosecution as the tampered evidence it is,  dismiss it, and go on to review why the prosecution resorted to tampering evidence:  Kyle Rittenhouse acted in self defense, and the prosecution knows it.

Oh, and remind the jury how Kyle came to care about this area, his roots to the city.

I can only imagine the effort the defense team will be putting in this weekend.     I hope they leave time to practice.

Lastly, as far as I'm concerned, the prosecution team can just keep drinking.   


(I haven't a clue how the threats of personal and civil violence will factor in  --- )