An Antioch teenager has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide in connection with the fatal shooting of two people during the third night of protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, over the the police shooting of a Black man, Jacob Blake.
Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, of Antioch, surrendered himself early Wednesday at the Antioch Police Department, Police Chief Geoffrey Guttschow said.
The Antioch Police Department advised in a news release Wednesday that it is aware of several posts that may imply that Antioch “may experience social unrest.” The department said it “has devoted its full attention to evaluating every one of these posts in an attempt to determine their level of validity and credibility.”
Rittenhouse remained at a Lake County juvenile detention center Wednesday on local charges labeling him a fugitive of justice from Wisconsin, where a warrant has been issued for his arrest, said the Lake County Sheriff’s Office spokesman, Sgt. Christopher Covelli.
Generally, when a person faces extradition to another state, a judge has the opportunity to review the facts of the case before transportation is arranged, Covelli said, not in reference to Rittenhouse’s case specifically.
The teenager is scheduled for a court appearance in Lake County on Friday, records show.
Two people were shot to death and another was wounded during the shooting. A possible vigilante was seen on cellphone video opening fire in the middle of the street with a rifle.
The gunfire was reported just before midnight, and Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth said one victim was shot in the head and another in the chest, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. The third victim’s wounds were not believed to life threatening.
Beth told the Journal Sentinel that armed people had been patrolling the city’s streets in recent nights, but he did not know if the gunman was among them.
During a news conference Wednesday, Beth said he’d received an inquiry about deputizing armed citizens.
“Yesterday, I had a person call me and say ‘why don’t you deputize citizens who have guns to come out and patrol the city of Kenosha?’ and I’m like ‘oh hell no.’ And what happened last night … is probably the perfect reason why I wouldn’t,” Beth said. “I don’t know this for sure, but the incident that happened last night where two people lost their lives, I think they were part of this group that wanted me to deputize them.”
Beth said he did not know whether Rittenhouse was among that group.
The teenager was at one point, however, affiliated with a youth public safety program through the Grayslake Police Department, according to an official statement.
“On [Wednesday] the Grayslake Police Department was notified that a former Public Safety Cadet, (youth program) was a possible suspect in a shooting in Kenosha WI last night,” department said. “Due to the subject’s age and Illinois State Law, we cannot make further comment on this matter except to say the Grayslake Police Department is fully cooperating with the FBI and Kenosha Police Department in their investigation.”
The shooting of Blake — apparently while three of his children looked on — was captured on cellphone video and ignited new protests over racial injustice in the U.S. just three months after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police touched off a wider reckoning on race.
Kenosha police have said little about what happened, other than that they were responding to a domestic dispute. They have not said why the officers opened fire or whether Blake was armed, and they have not disclosed the race of three officers who were on the scene.
The 29-year-old Blake underwent surgery Tuesday, said Ben Crump, the lawyer for Blake’s family. He said the bullets severed his spinal cord and shattered his vertebrae. Another attorney said there was also severe damage to organs.
This is a developing story. Check www.nwherald.com for updates.
• The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: The Daily Chronicle
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