Lawyer reveals PTSD-suffering teen wants to relocate his family and become a NURSE

 

  • Kyle Rittenhouse was seen smiling in the backseat of his getaway vehicle as he was driven off Friday afternoon after he was quickly whisked out of Kenosha courthouse
  • The teenager was cleared of all five charges by a jury in the Kenosha County Circuit Court 
  • His lawyer,  Mark Richards, said Rittenhouse was feeling ‘huge sense of relief’ after being found innocent
  • Rittenhouse faced life in prison if convicted on the most serious charge for using an AR-style semi-automatic rifle to kill two men and wound a third 
  • The Rittenhouse shootings took place during riots on August 25, 2020 – two days after Jacob Blake was shot in the back when officers responded to a ‘family trouble’ the evening of August 23 

Kyle Rittenhouse could be seen smiling in the backseat of an SUV as he was driven away from the Kenosha courthouse Friday afternoon after being cleared of all charges.

Rittenhouse, 18, collapsed in tears and hugged his attorney as the jury in his double murder trial acquitted him of all charges after four days of deliberation and weeks of testimony. The verdict came in at 12:15 p.m. Friday in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Rittenhouse faced life in prison if convicted on the most serious charge for using an AR-style semi-automatic rifle to kill two men – Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum – and wound a third, Gaige Grosskreutz.

Outside the court, defense lawyer Mark Richards said Rittenhouse was feeling a ‘huge sense of relief’ at the verdict.

‘He is on his way home, he wants to get on with his life,’ Richards said. ‘He has to get on with his life the best he can.’

Richards revealed that the defense team had two mock trials, one with Rittenhouse giving testimony and one without, and it was clear from the jury reaction that he had to go on the stand.

He also said the jury deliberations were longer than any other case he had been involved in.

Richards said he believed the Rittenhouse family would move out of the area because of the number of death threats they have received.

‘Kyle is in counseling for PTSD. He doesn’t sleep at night,’ he said.

‘Eventually some anonymity will come back to him but I don’t think he will continue to live in this area.’

‘I think it’s too dangerous,’ Richards said. He explained that Rittenhouse has had security following him around the clock ‘since this happened.’

He said Rittenhouse and his team have received a ‘scary’ amount of death threats.

Now that Rittenhouse has been acquitted in the shootings, his lawyer said he plans to be a nurse.

Richards also criticized prosecutor Thomas Binger. ‘Justice is done when the truth is reached. Prosecutors are supposed to seek the truth. It’s not about winning,’ he said.

But he praised Judge Schroeder, saying he had presided over a ‘fair trial.’

‘He gives you a fair trial as a defendant — but you don’t want him to sentence your client,’ he said, commenting on his reputation for handing out stiff sentences.

‘If we had lost we know what would happen, he would have gotten life in prison. We asked for a fair trial and we got one.’