Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger appeared stunned after a key prosecution witness in the murder trial of Kyle Rittenhouse in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Gaige Grosskreutz, admitted that he was only shot after he pursued the fleeing teenager and drew his own weapon, a handgun, and pointed it at Rittenhouse.
Grosskreutz was shot in the bicep, one of three people whom Rittenhouse shot that evening.
Rittenhouse, an Illinois resident, was in Wisconsin, working as a lifeguard, and joined other volunteers in protecting Kenosha businesses during Black Lives Matter riots.
In this Aug. 25, 2020, file photo, Kyle Rittenhouse, left, with backwards cap, walks along Sheridan Road in Kenosha, Wis., with another armed civilian. A Republican student group at Arizona State University is receiving backlash for donating money to Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old gunman who fatally shot two protesters in Wisconsin. College Republicans United announced this week that half of any funds they raise during the semester will go toward paying for the legal defense of Kyle Rittenhouse. (Adam Rogan/The Journal Times via AP, File)
He also cleaned graffiti off buildings and offered medical aid to protesters, before being attacked during a riot. In the melee, he fired an AR-15 rifle in what his lawyers claimed was self-defense, killing two and wounding Grosskreutz.
Democrats seized on the event in an attempt to blame President Donald Trump for the Kenosha riots, which had been a serious liability for then-candidate Joe Biden, who was slow to condemn them.