17-Year-Old White Gunman Who Killed Two Black Men During Protest Over Police Shooting, Arrested
Kyle Rittenhouse a 17-year-old white teenager was seen walking away from past several police vehicles while holding a semi-automatic gun in his hand and saying 'I just killed someone'.
The sheer contrast in the police behavior in the two cases is what blacks and other minorities in the US have long accused the cops about.
Just a few days ago Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old black man who was not armed at the time, but reportedly had a knife inside his SUV was shot on the back seven times by a police officer.
REUTERS
On Tuesday night, Kyle Rittenhouse a 17-year-old white teenager was seen walking away from past several police vehicles while holding a semi-automatic gun in his hand and saying 'I just killed someone'.
The 17-year-old had travelled to Kenosha, some 25 kms from his home with an AR-15 semi-automatic gun on Tuesday night, and confronted a group of black men who were protesting on the streets again the police shooting of Blake earlier this week.
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It is still unclear how it all started but in several videos posted online showed Rittenhouse trying to flee from a group of protesters. He trips on the road and opens several rounds of fire at the men approaching him.
Two people were killed and a third person was wounded in the firing.
In the videos, Rittenhouse can be seen opening fire again at the protesters as he flees.
Moments later when police vehicles start arriving Rittenhouse is seen walking past them.
¡°I just killed somebody,¡± the gunman could be heard saying.
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Asked at a news conference on Wednesday why officers did not confront the man, Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth said: "In situations that are high stress you have such an incredible tunnel vision. You have no idea what's outside."
Kenosha police asked witnesses to come forward, requesting additional video or photos beyond those posted on social media.
Following his arrest, it has emerged that Rittenhouse could be a member of a group that was deputised to help police during the protests.
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On Wednesday, Facebook took down the page of the Kenosha Guard, a self-described local militia that had called on members to help protect the streets.
Kenosha has been the scene of protest for days now after Blake was shot at by police who said they were responding to a domestic incident.
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Blake was shot on the back as he was trying to enter his SUV in front of his three children.
According to the doctors attending Blake, he has been paralyzed below the waist and it is unlikely that he will ever walk again.
Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
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