KENOSHA, Wis. — A Kenosha County judge has denied prosecutors' request to hike Kyle Rittenhouse's bond by $200,000. The court did require the 18-year-old to provide his current home address, but that address will be withheld from the public, as Rittenhouse's attorneys claim his family has received death threats.
Rittenhouse was charged with first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide and two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety in the fatal shooting of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber during protests in Kenosha last summer. Gaige Grosskreutz was also injured in the shooting. Rittenhouse has pleaded not guilty to the charges, claiming self-defense.
The issue over Rittenhouse's address arouse after prosecutors called for the court to raise his bond earlier this month, alleging Rittenhouse broke his bond agreement.
Rittenhouse was first spotted at a Racine County bar drinking beer and flashing the OK symbol, which has been appropriated by white nationalists, with members of the Proud Boys, a white nationalist group, last month. Police determined Rittenhouse was not in violation of his bond agreement at the time.
When Rittenhouse posted his $2 million bond last November, his previous defense attorney, John Pierce, provided police with Rittenhouse's former address. Rittenhouse's defense says the family was forced to move to an undisclosed 'safe house' after people sent the family death threats.
Believing the former address to be his current one, the court sent Rittenhouse court documents, only to have the documents shipped back. Law enforcement sent to the address found the residence occupied by a man not part of Rittenhouse's family.
That is when Kenosha County prosecutors filed a motion for Rittenhouse's arrest and to raise his bond by $200,000. Rittenhouse's current defense attorney, Mark Richards, filed an objection to the motion, claiming that Rittenhouse had to relocate for his safety, but that they would be willing to provide the court his current address, as long it was hidden from the public's eye.
This particular issue has for the moment come to a close in court Thursday afternoon, with a judge deciding in favor of Rittenhouse's defense, TMJ4's Ben Jordan reports.
This story originally reported by Jackson Danbeck on TMJ4.com.
