The 17-year-old alleged shooter who killed two people and seriously injured a third has been hit with additional charges.
According to CNN, on Thursday (Aug. 27), prosecutors also charged Kyle Rittenhouse with one count of reckless homicide, a count for attempted intentional homicide and two counts of recklessly endangering safety. He’s also being charged with possession of a dangerous weapon while under the age of 18. That charge is a misdemeanor.
On Wednesday (Aug. 25), the teenager was arrested and charged with first-degree intentional homicide after he traveled across state lines and killed multiple people during protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin following the shooting of Jacob Blake.
Videos of the shooting went viral and showed the 17-year-old running around with his rifle. In one video, you can see Rittenhouse fatally shoot someone in the head. You can then see him running off with his rifle as he says, “I just killed someone,” over the phone.
In another video, a group of protesters chased Rittenhouse down and threw objects at him. He opened fire on the crowd and another person, possibly the second gunshot victim, was seen lying on the ground. The third person he shot during the night, is expected to survive.
Investigators are looking into the teen’s now-deleted social media accounts which appeared to show his support for Donald Trump and “Blue Lives Matter.” He also has several TikTok videos of him shooting his gun in target practice and assembling a large rifle. Rittenhouse also posted a video of himself front row at a Trump rally earlier this year.
Trump’s campaign issued a statement on Wednesday night (Aug. 26) distancing themselves from Rittenhouse.
“President Trump has repeatedly and consistently condemned all forms of violence and believes we must protect all Americans from chaos and lawlessness,” Tim Murtaugh, communications director of Trump’s 2020 campaign, said in a statement. “This individual had nothing to do with our campaign and we fully support our fantastic law enforcement for their swift action in this case.”
Rittenhouse is currently being held at the Lake County Juvenile Detention Center in Illinois. Authorities plan to charge him as an adult and extradite him back to Wisconsin.