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Kyle Rittenhouse: Is Kenosha gunman innocent? Internet rallies for 17-year-old who said 'I shot two White kids'

Rittenhouse has been charged with 2 counts of homicide that killed Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, injured Gaige Grosskreutz, 26 and four other charges

Does the name Kyle Rittenhouse ring a bell? The 17-year-old teen gunman shot two people dead and wounded a third, during Kenosha protests two months ago. After the ordeal, he walked into the Antioch, Illinois, police station "visibly upset" and told an officer he had "ended a man's life," according to records released late Friday, October 30, 2020. On August 26, 2020, he went to his hometown police station with his mother Wendy Rittenhouse shortly before 1.30 am and turned himself. 

The suspect has now been charged with two counts of homicide that killed Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, injured Gaige Grosskreutz, 26 and four other charges in connection with the Kenosha protest shootings. As per reports, the assault-style rifle was purchased by an 18-year-old friend of Rittenhouse, and it was later tossed into the trunk of the friend's car. Reportedly, Rittenhouse or his mother did not have a gun permit in Illinois.

New court records reveal more details after the shooting. Rittenhouse told officers he had been hired to protect a business in Kenosha. However, the owner of the business, Car Source, told the Journal Sentinel that he did not hire anyone to act as armed security. The teen also said that Antioch police told him to go home when he had tried to turn himself in.

Firefighters were requested for a medical check of Rittenhouse, who had small scratches on his arm but no bruising or cuts. While waiting for medical help, he said, "I shot two White kids." While waiting for Kenosha detectives, reports say "the teen cycled through a range of emotions, from crying fits to periods of calm to throwing up."

The report further reads: "Hours later, Rittenhouse began having trouble breathing so police called firefighters again. Soon after that, Rittenhouse was booked as a fugitive from justice on the Kenosha warrant for first-degree intentional homicide and was taken to a juvenile detention center."

Judge Paul Novak of Lake County, Illinois, announced the ruling and said that matters filed by Rittenhouse's attorneys such as the safety of their client can be brought up in hearings in Wisconsin. Rittenhouse's legal team has maintained how the teenager acted in self-defense and should not be charged with any crime. As of now, he is detained in Kenosha County Jail, Sgt David Wright of the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department said.

Defending him, lawyer Pierce wrote, "While we have great respect for Judge Novak, we obviously and strongly disagree with today's decision. Kyle has an absolute statutory right to appeal the denial of his habeas corpus petition pursuant to 725 ILCS 225/10. We will never surrender. Kyle will be set free and cleared of all charges." He also posted, "He is grateful to you all and asks for your continued prayers. God Bless Kyle Rittenhouse and the USA. #FightBack."

No sooner did the news hit social media, many people cried out that he was innocent. "Kyle Rittenhouse defended himself against a psychotic pedophile chasing him through the streets and trying to murder him. The kid is innocent," one tweet read and another said, "Kyle Rittenhouse defended himself. He is 100% innocent. You’re an idiot." A third chimed in, "Kyle Rittenhouse is innocent until proven guilty. Twitter is not a court of law."

However, many people were shocked to see those comments. "The amount of people acting like Kyle Rittenhouse is some poor innocent kid wrongly convicted is just mind-boggling," one Twitter user posted and another said, "This s**t is for real getting out hand. I’m sick of seeing people call Kyle Rittenhouse an innocent kid when you got #TrayvonMartin laying in a grave and he’s still getting called a 'thug' 8 years later. #BlackLivesMatter." A third user said: "If you think Kyle Rittenhouse was innocent, a "hero", etc, but think the murder of Breonna Taylor was justified because 'she/her boyfriend was a drug dealer' or 'they shot first' then it's clear you don't care about the 2nd amendment. You're just racist."

Earlier this month, Rittenhouse's attorneys reportedly filed a petition for habeas corpus, as per which they argued that "to extradite Rittenhouse would be to turn him over to the mob," CNN reports. During the hearing, Pierce called the case "a very unique, extraordinary situation" and said that there is a "massive amount of video evidence that shows that there's beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this is not a legitimate criminal prosecution."