Juror Dismissed From Rittenhouse Trial Over Joke

KENOSHA, WI — Kenosha County Circuit Court Judge Bruce Schroeder dismissed a juror Thursday over a joke the juror made to a deputy Wednesday at the Kyle Rittenhouse trial.

Schroeder said he wanted to keep public confidence in the outcome of the trial.

"The appearance of bias is present and it would seriously undermine the outcome of the case, so that would be cause for discharge," he said.

The juror said that the joke they made had nothing to do with Rittenhouse or the case. The juror didn't repeat the joke in court.

Rittenhouse is charged first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, attempted homicide, reckless endangerment and possessing a weapon while under 18 in the fatal shooting during protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake. The shooting left two protesters dead and injured a third on Aug. 25, 2020.

Cross examination of witnesses continued immediately after the dismissal.

The juror told a joke about the shooting of Jacob Blake, Schroeder said. Neither the prosecution nor the defense objected to ejecting the juror. The jury now has 19 members, though only 12 are needed to make a verdict.

Jurors saw hours of video on Wednesday of Anthony Huber, 26, Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Gabe Grosskreutz, 26, during the shootings. Huber and Rosenbaum both died, and Grosskreutz was injured.

Kenosha Police Department Detective Martin Howard was called to testify and said he collected videos from the internet and witness cell phones as part of his investigation.

Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger had Howard point out key people and locations in video for the jury to show Rittenhouse's movements that night.

Defense Attorney Mark Richards questioned Howard about Rittenhouse's reactions when he fell. Howard said it was correct that Rittenhouse would not have known what to expect if someone was hitting him with a skateboard or "putting their hands on your weapon."