Crime & Safety

NYC Reacts To 'Not Guilty' Verdict In Kyle Rittenhouse Case

The Kenosha shooter's acquittal on homicide charges prompted swift backlash in New York City.

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Kyle Rittenhouse looks over to his attorneys as the jury is dismissed for the day during his trial at the Kenosha County Courthouse in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Thursday.
Kyle Rittenhouse looks over to his attorneys as the jury is dismissed for the day during his trial at the Kenosha County Courthouse in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Thursday. (Sean Krajacic/The Kenosha News via AP, Pool)

NEW YORK CITY — Terrible. Disgusting. A frightening precedent.

Furious New Yorkers used those words Friday in the moments after a jury found Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty on all counts connected to two shooting deaths amid protests and unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Rittenhouse's trial turned on whether he acted in self-defense when he shot three men, killing two, or had in fact provoked violence at a racial justice protest.

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Mayor Bill de Blasio echoed widespread left-wing fears that Rittenhouse's acquittal could embolden extremist violence.

"This verdict is disgusting and it sends a horrible message to this country," he tweeted shortly after the verdict.

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"Where is the justice in this?"

New York City, like many cities during the summer of 2020, was gripped by protests over the killing of George Floyd, racial justice and police brutality.

The city's protests had early incidents of looting and violence by demonstrators, but they were overwhelmingly peaceful, at least on the protesters' part. Authorities logged hundreds of complaints against NYPD officers.

The Rittenhouse verdict could reopen wounds that barely, if at all, healed over since the protests.

The verdict yet again showed the justice system props up centuries of racial violence, said Brad Lander, the city's next comptroller.

"Accountability for vigilante murders shouldn’t be too much to ask," he tweeted.

Bill Neidhardt, who until recently served as De Blasio's chief spokesperson, cast the verdict in stark terms.

"Not only is this a failure to hold a killer accountable, it's a frightening precedent that will embolden the already dangerous and deadly far-right elements of America," he tweeted.

Another city spokesperson, Nathaniel Styer with the Department of Education, also raised the specter of gun-toting people threatening or killing protesters with impunity.

"In America, any time anyone attends a peaceful protest they have to worry that someone could show up with a gun, threaten people, & claim self defense if they decide to use that gun," he tweeted.

Frederick Joseph, an author and activist who lives in Brooklyn, contrasted Rittenhouse's case with that of Kalief Browder, a Black man who spent years in custody in New York City's jail system.

"Kalief Browder died by suicide after facing traumas in jail as he was held without trial for 3 years for allegedly stealing a backpack," he tweeted. "He spent 2 years in solitary confinement.

"Kyle Rittenhouse murdered two men, raised millions of dollars in support, and then walked free."

Rafael Espinal, a union leader and former Council member, was succinct in his thoughts.

"Terrible," he tweeted.

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