Kyle Rittenhouse plans to sue Biden for libel over video tweet suggesting he is a white supremacist: Attorney
Kenosha shooting suspect Kyle Rittenhouse's attorneys have said that they plan to file a lawsuit against former Vice President Joe Biden and his campaign for libel after the presidential candidate tweeted a video suggesting the teen is a white supremacist. The 17-year-old's legal representative, Lin Wood, in a statement on Tuesday, September 29, said that he is taking steps to demand a formal "public retraction" from the Biden/Harris campaign hours after the Democratic nominee shared the video.
The video, a 50-second clip, shows a mashup of scenes from white supremacist rallies and far-right groups across the country as the first 2020 presidential debate moderator Chris Wallace is heard asking President Donald Trump if he is willing to condemn racist organizations. The short video also includes a picture of Rittenhouse holding a rifle during the Kenosha protests, where he allegedly shot and killed two of the demonstrators and wounded a third.
Biden, while sharing the video, wrote: "There's no other way to put it: the President of the United States refused to disavow white supremacists on the debate stage last night."
Wood, in a response to the tweet, wrote: "[A] formal demand for public retraction is being prepared for Biden/Harris Campaign on behalf of Kyle Rittenhouse. I also hereby demand that [Joe Biden] immediately retract his false accusation that Kyle is a white supremacist & militia member responsible for violence in Kenosha."
"On behalf of Kyle Rittenhouse, I shall sue Joe Biden & Biden/Harris Campaign for libel. 'I am partisan in 20/20 supporting [Donald Trump.] I am non-partisan trial lawyer who aggressively pursues truth to achieve justice. Put in your hearing aid, Joe. You will hear footsteps," Wood added in a follow-up tweet.
Wood later also announced that attorney Todd McCurty would also be joining Ritterhouse's legal team in pursuing the libel case against Biden and his campaign. McCurty tweeted: "Presidential candidate [Joe Biden] had defamed Kyle Rittenhouse by suggesting on this video that he is a white Supremacist. The#Left just will not stop. I am working on the retraction demand now for Mr. Biden and his campaign."
In the latest update in the case, Rittenhouse is fighting his extradition to Wisconsin from Illinois. The 17-year-old's lawyer, John Pierce, during an online court hearing in Illinois on Friday, September 25, said that he planned to fight the request by Kenosha prosecutors that Rittenhouse be transferred to Wisconsin to face charges for the shootings. Rittenhouse, who allegedly shot and killed two protesters on the streets of Kenosha during a demonstration to protest Jacob Blake's shooting, has been portrayed as a courageous patriot by his attorneys, who claim that he acted in self-defense and was exercising his right to bear arms during the protest.
As demonstrators marched on August 25 demanding justice for Blake fighting for his life at a hospital, they sometimes faced off with armed civilians. The scuffle, however, took a deadly turn when Rittenhouse opened fire, allegedly killing two people and wounding a third, according to a criminal complaint. Within minutes of the shooting, police and emergency services rushed to the scene and chaotic videos of the incident began emerging on social media. The suspect, however, succeeded in slipping past a group of officers unnoticed. The teenager was later arrested nearly 30 miles away in Antioch, Illinois.
Rittenhouse has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide in the killing of two protesters — Anthony M Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum — and attempted intentional homicide in the wounding of a third. The teenager is also facing a misdemeanor charge of underage firearm possession for wielding a semi-automatic rifle. Rittenhouse will face a mandatory life imprisonment sentence if convicted of first-degree homicide.