Kyle Rittenhouse burst into tears during his homicide trial while on the witness stand when he was asked to describe the events leading up to him shooting three men in the aftermath of demonstrations in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
An emotional Rittenhouse testified that an individual, who was among the three that he shot, aggressively chased him into a parking lot. The suspect argued that the man had lunged at him, prompting him to defend himself.
Kyle Rittenhouse Bursts in Tears
In his testimony, the suspect said that he remembered the man's hand on the barrel of his gun after the judge called a recess to allow Rittenhouse to compose himself. The trial was also attended by the suspect's mother who can be heard weeping from her row in the courtroom gallery.
But for the majority of the trial on Wednesday, the 18-year-old suspect appeared to be composed, confident, and sometimes quizzical amid hours of questioning. Lawyers asked Rittenhouse on the basis of six criminal counts, including intentional and reckless homicide, reckless endangerment, and illegal possession of a firearm, the New York Times reported.
Before breaking down in tears, Rittenhouse argued that he was not looking for trouble when he traveled to Kenosha armed with a military-style assault rifle on Aug. 25, 2020. The defendant said he was merely trying to offer his assistance and provide first aid while protecting a local business from rioters.
The teenage suspect has pleaded not guilty to felony counts for the shootings in Kenosha and faces life in prison if convicted for the most serious charges. When asked to return to the witness stand, Rittenhouse recounted his version of the events before he shot the three men, arguing that he was acting in self-defense against multiple assailants.
The 18-year-old suspect said he was walking with a fire extinguisher toward the parking lot of a local business to put out a fire when he heard a scream that said, "burn in hell!" Rittenhouse said that he responded by saying he was a friendly guy who was just trying to help, Yahoo News reported.
Defending Himself
However, during cross-examination, Rittenhouse revealed that he knew the man who lunged at him, identified as Joseph Rosenbaum, was unarmed when he ran at him. The 18-year-old said he pointed his rifle at the victim to try and prevent him from approaching, adding that he had full knowledge that pointing a rifle at a person was dangerous.
"He was chasing me, I was alone, he threatened to kill me earlier that night. I didn't want to have to shoot him. I pointed at him because he kept running at me and I didn't want him to chase me," said Rittenhouse in his testimony, CNN reported.
The defendant said that he was afraid that Rosenbaum, whom he revealed did not touch the suspect at all that night, would steal his gun and kill other people. Rittenhouse argued that if he had let Rosenbaum take his weapon, the victim would have then had the means to kill him and a lot more people in the area.
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