Jared Sindt
ONLINE REPORTER
The Kyle Rittenhouse case was one of the strangest and most useless attempts at prosecution this country has seen in years.
Millions were up in arms over the court’s decision to acquit Rittenhouse of all charges, but at the end of the day, what could they charge him on that the prosecution successfully brought up?
There was no hard evidence given to the idea of a planned attack, and the defense was hand-given a self-defense case through the only surviving witness.
Gaige Grosskreutz was the only survivor of Rittenhouse’s shooting, and he failed to give the prosecution anything that would convict or make Rittenhouse seem even mildly guilty.
Grosskreutz even acknowledged that Rittenhouse didn’t fire a shot until Grosskreutz made an advance on him, even though he claimed to have no intent to kill Rittenhouse.
“It wasn’t until you pointed your gun at him, advanced on him, with your gun — now your hands down — pointed at him that he fired? Right?” Chorafisi asked. Grosskreutz responded, “Correct.”
After these comments and acknowledging one of the kills as “reckless,” it’s easy to see why Rittenhouse was acquitted as a result of a poor prosecution.
Diving past this however, was the final verdict a correct one? Even if the prosecution had been better, did they have a case against Rittenhouse at all?
Unfortunately for some to hear, there was very little way of prosecuting Rittenhouse from the start. Since most instances involved Rittenhouse being attacked before choosing to shoot his gun, most of the kills were easily self-defense claims.
There is also little to no evidence of Rittenhouse being a white supremacist, despite claims by the president. Rittenhouse was on a mission to help the people he thought the police were failing to, but at the end of the day, he was still a kid.
When it comes right down to it, society failed this entire situation. From our gun control laws and loopholes that allow a 17-year-old to purchase a firearm through a legal adult, to the failings of the mayor and the Kenosha government to handle things before they escalated.
Neither side, the left or the right, should take any pride or have a stake in this situation, as both sides are to blame. One side choose to label a child a terrorist and white supremacist, while the other choose to idolize and support killing.
Rittenhouse in my eyes was a kid who although misguided, killed because he got in way over his head. This doesn’t mean that he’s a terrorist, or a white supremacist or a hero, but someone who sought to do good in their own eyes but became the nightmare of their own hero story.
I do not know if this experience will change how Rittenhouse views his actions, and I would’ve liked there to be some consequences for his actions, but I cannot condemn a child that was failed by society to prison in good conscience.
