Kyle Rittenhouse Trial: 500 Wisconsin National Guard Troops Activated Ahead Of Verdict
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers announced on Friday (November 12) that hundreds of Wisconsin National Guard troops have been activated ahead of the pending verdict in Kyle Rittenhouse’s murder trial, which is expected next week.
According to the New York Post, around 500 troops will be on standby outside of Kenosha and will respond “if requested by local law enforcement,” in the event of civil unrest.
“We continue to be in close contact with our partners at the local level to ensure the state provides support and resources to help keep the Kenosha community and greater area safe,” Evers said in a statement.
The national guard is being deployed in preparation for whatever verdict comes down, which could cause massive protests in Kenosha and throughout Wisconsin and the U.S.
Gaige Grosskreutz, who was shot by Rittenhouse but survived, is suing the city, the county and several law enforcement officers, claiming they condoned Rittenhouse’s efforts, as well as those of “white nationalists to violently dispel demonstrators protesting” Jacob Blake’s police shooting last year, according to NPR.
Grosskreutz's federal lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Wisconsin states authorities in Kenosha both knew that armed vigilantes planned to patrol the protest and encouraged their participation.
The defense in the Rittenhouse trial rested its case on Thursday. Closing arguments are expected to begin on Monday, and then the jury will begin deliberations.
“The Kenosha community has been strong, resilient, and has come together through incredibly difficult times these past two years, and that healing is still ongoing,” Evers added. “I urge folks who are otherwise not from the area to please respect the community by reconsidering any plans to travel there and encourage those who might choose to assemble and exercise their First Amendment rights to do so safely and peacefully.”
Rittenhouse took the stand on Wednesday (November 10) in his defense, breaking down in tears as he described the incident in which he says he felt he was given no choice but to shoot three people, killing two.
The Antioch, Ill., man is charged with two counts of homicide for fatally shooting Anthony Huber, 26, Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and wounding Grosskreutz during a 2020 demonstration over the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
At the time he was 17 and his attorneys argued that he was legally permitted to carry the AR-15 rifle he used in the shooting.
