Kyle Rittenhouse took the stand on Wednesday, gasping and sobbing in an attempt to defend his actions the night he shot three people during Jacob Blake protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Between his tears and quick glances toward the jury, Rittenhouse explained the events that led him to shoot three men, two of which died from their injuries. Rittenhouse said he used self-defense against the men that night to stop "the person who was attacking me."
The 18-year old maintains that Anthony Huber, 26, Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Gaige Grosskreutz, 27, were attempting to commit bodily harm, therefore he was compelled to shoot the men using a military-style semi-automatic rifle that his friend, Dominick Black, purchased on his behalf earlier that year.
Kyle Rittenhouse shot and killed Anthony Huber, 26, and Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and injured Gaige Grosskreutz, now 27.
Think about how much their loved ones have cried, real anguish and grief, not crocodile tears. pic.twitter.com/7CFizX88xt
— Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@ananavarro) November 10, 2021
Rittenhouse asserts that Rosenbaum shouted the f-word at him multiple times.
"He screamed, 'If I catch any of you f**kers alone, I'm going to f**king kill you. I'm going to cut your f**king heart out," he said.
When defense attorney Mark Richards pressed Rittenhouse to describe in more detail the events of that night, the teenager broke down in unruly sobs and dry heaves, causing Kenosha County Circuit Judge Bruce Schroeder to halt the proceedings for recess.
Once composed, Rittenhouse disclosed to the court that Huber struck him with a skateboard in an attempt to disarm him, which Rittenhouse said prompted him to fire his gun, killing Huber.
“Mr. Huber runs up, as I’m getting up, he strikes me in the neck with his skateboard a second time. He grabs my gun, and I can feel it pulling away from me, and I can feel the straps coming off my body. I fire one shot," Rittenhouse testified.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger continued to confront Rittenhouse, asking him if his intention was to kill people.
“I didn’t intend to kill them. I intended to stop the people who were attacking me. I did what I had to do to stop the person who was attacking me,” Rittenhouse said timidly.
Rittenhouse was 17 at the time and was a resident of Antioch, Illinois. He now faces six criminal charges, one of which carries a sentence of life in prison.
