In Kenosha, Wisconsin, jury deliberations begin today in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, the white teenage gunman who fatally shot two people and wounded a third during protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in 2020. Rittenhouse faces five felony charges, including first-degree intentional homicide. On Monday, the judge dropped a sixth charge for unlawful weapon possession. During closing arguments, Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger urged jurors to convict Rittenhouse. 

Thomas Binger: “There is no doubt in this case that the defendant committed these crimes. He committed a first-degree reckless homicide against Joseph Rosenbaum. He put Richie McGinniss’s life in jeopardy. He put Jump Kick Man’s life in jeopardy. He intended to kill Anthony Huber. And he attempted to kill Gaige Grosskreutz. All of those elements are true.”

During his closing argument, defense attorney Mark Richards maintained Kyle Rittenhouse had acted in self-defense.

Mark Richards: “Kyle shot Joseph Rosenbaum to stop a threat to his person. And I’m glad he shot him, because if Joseph Rosenbaum had got that gun, I don’t for a minute believe he wouldn’t have used it against somebody else. He was irrational and crazy.”

As the jury begins deliberations, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has put 500 National Guard troops on standby ahead of a possible verdict.