A suspect has been identified in the recent shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The 17-year-old defendant, named by authorities and multiple reports as Kyle Rittenhouse, was arrested in Illinois, say cops.
From the Village of Antioch Police Department:
This morning Kenosha County authorities issued an arrest warrant for the individual responsible for the incident, charging him with First Degree Intentional Homicide. The suspect in this incident, 17-year-old Antioch resident, Kyle Rittenhouse, is currently in custody of the Lake County Judicial System pending an extradition hearing to transfer custody from Illinois to Wisconsin.
Records viewed by Law&Crime show that he is being represented by the Lake County Public Defender. They declined to comment when we reached out by phone. A clerk for Lake County, which is handling the extradition matter, told us that the defendant is being charged as an adult. An extradition hearing is set for Friday.
Protests began in Kenosha after the Sunday police shooting of 29-year-old local man Jacob Blake, who survived but is said to be paralyzed. The incident landed on a cultural fissure: How law enforcement treats people of color, especially Black men like Blake.
Kenosha police have been enforcing nightly curfews. Things got ugly on Tuesday.
A group of armed people congregated at a local gas station, ostensibly to protect it. The shooting happened near here. The area became tense, according to The New York Times. More people arrived there. There was reportedly arguing and shoving at the scene, as officers approached in armored trucks.
As seen on video, the suspect was running down the street. One person apparently struck him from behind. He felt at some point. He opened fire as another man did a leaping kick at him. Another person apparently tried to rip the firearm from his hands, but instead fell to the pavement as more shots were fired.
The suspect stood up. More shots were heard on video, but it didn’t seem as if he was pointing his weapon or firing it. He continued down the street.
“Hey, he just shot them,” a male bystander said. “Dude right here just shot them.”
The armed man had his hands up as several police vehicles with flashing lights drove past him.
Another video appears to show the shooter saying “I just killed somebody,” and running off.
[Screengrab via Brendan Gutenschwager @BGOnTheScene on Twitter]