Judge denies motion by U.S. teenager accused in Wisconsin protest shootings to dismiss two charges

·1 min read
U.S. teenager charged in Wisconsin protest shootings due in court

Judge denies motion by U.S. teenager accused in Wisconsin protest shootings to dismiss two charges

U.S. teenager charged in Wisconsin protest shootings due in court

(Reuters) - A judge on Thursday denied a motion by a lawyer for Kyle Rittenhouse, a U.S. teenager accused of fatally shooting two protesters and wounding a third during summer protests in Wisconsin, to dismiss two of the lesser charges against him.

The shootings occurred in August in Kenosha, Wisconsin amid civil unrest sparked by the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man. Rittenhouse's lawyers have said he was helping protect property and that he acted in self defense.

Rittenhouse, 17, was charged with first-degree reckless homicide and five other criminal counts related to the shootings, in which Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber were killed and Gaige Grosskreutz was wounded. The charges also include one count for illegal possession of a weapon and a count for allegedly endangering the safety of journalist Richard McGinnis.

Mark Richards, a lawyer for Rittenhouse, filed a motion this week seeking to have the weapons charge and the count related to McGinnis tossed, arguing that a "reasonable person" could not conclude those crimes were committed.

At a pretrial hearing on Thursday, Loren Keating, a Kenosha County judicial court commissioner, denied the motion, saying the charges could be challenged at trial.

Rittenhouse was extradited in late October from his home state of Illinois to Kenosha to face the charges. Rittenhouse, who has become a cause celebre of sorts for the political right, posted $2 million bail after a public fundraising campaign.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne in Wilton, Connecticut; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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