OPINION | This article contains the author's opinion.
A major decision was released by Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Bruce Schroeder, who is presiding over the Kyle Rittenhouse trial.
Lawyers cannot use the term “victim” to describe the two people who were shot and killed by Rittenhouse or the person wounded.
However, the defense lawyers are allowed to call them “rioters, looters or arsonists.”
The judge explained that the term “victim” is too loaded.
The three rioters include Joseph Rosenbaum, Anthony Huber, and Gaige Grosskreutz.
“The word victim is a loaded, loaded word,” Schroeder said, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The judge cautioned Rittenhouse’s defense team against pejorative terms in opening statements, but can use them during closing arguments.
Rittenhouse is charged with one count of first-degree intentional homicide, one count of first-degree reckless homicide, one count of attempted first-degree intentional homicide, and two counts of first-degree reckless endangerment.
This incident took place on night three of riots in Kenosha.
The riots were sparked when a police officer shot 29-year-old Jacob Blake.
Blake was armed with a knife and ignoring orders. When Blake opened the driver’s door to an SUV and leaned into it, he was shot in the back. The officer fired seven times believing that he was about to be stabbed.
Blake had a warrant for his arrest for charges of third-degree sexual assault, trespassing, and disorderly conduct in connection with domestic abuse.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger responded to the Rittenhouse trial ruling by saying, “The terms that I’m identifying here such as rioter, looter, and arsonist are as loaded, if not more loaded, than the term victim.”
“This is an attempt to tell the jury that Mr. Rosenbaum was a bad guy who deserved to die,” Binger said. “That’s really what’s going on here, your honor.”
Those words don't seem loaded at all. How in the fornication can you have someone on trial for murder and not have victims?
— Machine Pun Kelly (@KellyScaletta) October 26, 2021
More from Townhall:
The defense will be making the case Rittenhouse, who was 17 at the time, used the AR-15 rifle in self-defense as video from the night shows all three people in question attacking him.
Officers were called on Blake by his girlfriend and there was a warrant out for his arrest at the time of the shooting. Both the Kenosha County District Attorney and the Department of Justice have ruled the shooting justified.
Liberals and progressives were greatly upset at the news of Schroeder preventing prosecutors from referring to Rosenbaum, Huber, and Grosskreutz as “victims”:
"bullet recipients"?
"hunted human targets"?Judges matter. The mass installation of these GQPNRA White Nationalist judges is the other often overlooked component of this slow moving coup.
— Randi Mayem Singer (@rmayemsinger) October 26, 2021
The judge in Kyle Rittenhouse's trial says lawyers cannot call the 2 people he killed "victims."
Rittenhouse killed 2 people and wounded another with an AR-15 style weapon. The judge says "victim" is too "loaded" but will let lawyers call them "rioters, looters or arsonists." pic.twitter.com/KqK73Z3ytN
— AJ+ (@ajplus) October 26, 2021
they were alive before rittenhouse came along. he killed them. they're his victims. https://t.co/1Lzu7d42XC
— drew olanoff (@yoda) October 26, 2021
Kyle Rittenhouse crossed state lines and murdered two peaceful protesters. And the judge won’t even allow attorneys to call the deceased “victims.”
Something tells me not to expect the world’s fairest trial.
— Bryan Behar (@bryanbehar) October 26, 2021