This archive report was first published on 17 November 2021.
November 17, 2021, 4:01 p.m. ET
Kyle Rittenhouse's lawyers have requested a mistrial in his homicide trial due to technical issues with evidence, including a lower-quality version of a critical drone video.
The video shows the first shooting of the night of August 25, 2020, when Rittenhouse shot and killed Joseph Rosenbaum, the man he claimed had lunged for his gun.
Prosecutors had previously given the defense a lower-quality version of the video, which Rittenhouse's lawyers argue is not sufficient for a fair trial.
Judge Bruce Schroeder, who is 75 and has professed his own difficulties with technology, has not been well-suited to navigate these technical issues.
During the trial, Rittenhouse testified that he had gone to Kenosha to provide medical assistance and extinguish fires, but he seemed somewhat oblivious to the hostile reception he received from many demonstrators.
He appeared confused by prosecutors' repeated questions about why he had decided to go carrying a military-style semiautomatic rifle, and he struggled to answer basic questions about the rifle and the ammunition he used to kill two men and wound a third.
At one point, Rittenhouse said, 'I believe a bullet's a bullet.'
