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Timothy Simpkins: Here's why Internet is comparing school shooter to Kyle Rittenhouse

Timothy Simpkins was released on a $75K bail and Internet has been comparing him to Kyle Rittenhouse

ARLINGTON, TEXAS: The student accused of injuring four people in a shooting at Mansfield Timberview High School in Arlington was released on bail from the Tarrant County Jail on Thursday, October 7. A 15-year-old student who started a fight with Timothy Simpkins and a 25-year-old teacher who helped break up the fight were shot when Simpkins pulled a handgun from his backpack and opened fire on Wednesday, October 6. Another student was grazed by a bullet, and a teacher had minor injuries from a fall.

As per reports, Simpkins, 18, who is charged with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, was transferred from the Arlington jail to the Tarrant County facility before being released on Thursday afternoon. Simpkins' bond was reportedly set at $75,000. 

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Investigators believe the gun used in the crime — a 45-caliber handgun — was the one found about two miles from the school along a street in Grand Prairie. The shooting sent three people, two students, and a teacher, to the hospital. Two of those victims were shot and remain hospitalized. The 15-year-old student is in the ICU and 25-year-old teacher Calvin Pettit is in good condition. All of those injured are expected to recover.

The family of Simpkins wrote in a lengthy Facebook post on Thursday, October 7, that Simpkins was “beaten, taunted, and harassed on a daily basis.” The Facebook post said that the teenager was painted as a “menace to our society and nothing could be further from the truth.”

“From the beginning of this school year, Timothy has been bullied at school. He has been beaten, taunted, and harassed on a daily basis,” the post read. “Recently he was ambushed by a group of young males outside of school, stripped of his clothing in front of a crowd of onlookers, and robbed of his money and possessions. He has been humiliated and stripped of his dignity on more than one occasion which led to him being fearful to go to school or even leave our home without an adult.” The Facebook post said the issues were brought to school officials’ attention, but no actions were taken.

On social media, Simpkins’ case garnered attention. But it also found an unlikely comparison. To Kyle Rittenhouse, the teen gunman accused of killing protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August 2020. And a lot of the comparisons were made in bad faith.

One tweet said, “18 yr old Timothy George Simpkins shot 4 people at a Texas school & is released 24hrs later with MSM painting a narrative of a ‘bullied victim’. 17yr old Kyle Rittenhouse shot someone who was about to cave his head in & instantly sent to prison and the MSM painted him a monster.”

Another tweet read, “Kyle Rittenhouse: shoots three criminals in self defense - bait $2 million and no lawyers will represent him. Timothy Simpkins: brings a gun to school, shoots 4 people including a teacher - bail $25k and released in less than 24 hours.” As mentioned earlier, the bond amount was reported to be $75,000. Another similar tweet claimed, “18yr old Timothy George Simpkins shot four people at a Texas school and is released less than 24hrs later with the mainstream media painting a narrative of a ‘bullied victim’.17yr old Kyle Rittenhouse shot someone who was about to cave his head in, he was instantly sent to prison.”

Rittenhouse, of Antioch, Illinois, was 17 on August 25, 2020, when he fatally shot two men and wounded another man while carrying an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle at a protest prompted by a police shooting of a Black man, prosecutors have said. In November 2020, Rittenhouse posted $2 million in bail and was released from custody.

Rittenhouse is charged with homicide, attempted homicide, and being a minor in possession of a firearm. Rittenhouse’s trial is scheduled to begin on November 1.

Many, of course, also pointed out the differences between Rittenhouse and Simpkins, and why comparing them did not achieve anything. One Tweet read, “I swear white people want to seem oppressed so bad. Kyle Rittenhouse murdered two people. He is charged with multiple counts of murder. While I don’t agree with Timothy Simpkins’ actions, the fact is no one was killed.” Another tweet said, “Kyle Rittenhouse killed 2 more people than Timothy George Simpkins.”

One person said, “Are the same people defending the actions of Kyle Rittenhouse going to defend Timothy George Simpkins who seemed to be actually defending himself? Kyle went looking for trouble, he is not innocent of anything.”