Rittenhouse has been cleared of all charges
Kyle Rittenhouse, the US teenager who shot dead two men during racial justice protests in the streets of Kenosha, Wisconsin, has been cleared of homicide and all other charges against him.
The 18-year-old killed the two men and wounded a third in August 2020, but claimed at his trial that he was acting in self-defence and feared for his life.
Rittenhouse faced a total of five charges, including intentional homicide. Had he been found guilty, he would have faced a mandatory life sentence.
However, a 12-person jury decided he was not guilty on all charges, reaching their verdict after three days of deliberations. Rittenhouse broke down in tears as the verdicts were read out.
Riots had broken out in Kenosha on August 23 2020 after Jacob Blake, a black man, was shot by police.
Rittenhouse arrived two days later, travelling to the city from his home in the state of Illinois. He was armed with a semi-automatic rifle, and claimed he intended to help protect property from the rioters. Prosecutors had argued he was looking for trouble.
BREAKING: US teenager Kyle Rittenhouse has been found not guilty of the murders of two men and the attempted murder of a third at a demonstration in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Get the latest updates on this story: https://t.co/1NpgnliFEc pic.twitter.com/gEOaZagBlJ
— Sky News (@SkyNews) November 19, 2021
Related links:
