Judge Denied Motion to Raise Bail and to Issue Arrest Warrant for Kyle Rittenhouse

Judge Bruce Schroeder denied the State of Wisconsin’s motion to raise Kyle Rittenhouse’s bail and to issue an arrest warrant for him in the motion hearing on Feb. 11, allowing Rittenhouse to go anywhere while facing numerous felony charges.

Prosecution lawyer Thomas Binger and the State of Wisconsin asked for the bail to be raised $200,000 more than the current $2 million.

Kimberly Motley, the attorney for the Rosenbaum estate and for Gaige Grosskreutz, who was allegedly shot by Rittenhouse, as well as John Huber, father of the deceased Anthony Huber, all asked for Rittenhouse’s bail to be raised to $4 million. They also asked for Rittenhouse to be electronically monitored, for his passport, if he had one, to be surrendered, for him to not be able to get a passport and for his movement to be confined between home, his attorney’s office and court, according to Motley.

According to the original criminal complaint, the State of Wisconsin has charged Rittenhouse with first-degree reckless homicide, two counts of first degree recklessly endangering safety, first degree intentional homicide, attempted first degree intentional homicide and possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18.

Rittenhouse allegedly shot and killed Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum and shot and wounded Grosskreutz during a protest in Kenosha on Aug. 25, 2020, according to the criminal complaint.

“It is in my opinion that Mr. Rittenhouse has shown a pattern, has shown a lack of remorse during this bond time before trial,” Grosskreutz said at the hearing.

John Pierce, Rittenhouse’s former defense attorney, said in a press release that Rittenhouse was attacked by a mob on August 25. Pierce said Rittenhouse fired multiple rounds towards his “immediate attackers, striking two” in an act of self-defense.

The State of Wisconsin proposed the Feb. 11 motion to the court after Rittenhouse was seen at Mount Pleasant bar in Racine while he was out on bail. He was drinking beer and flashed a white power symbol, according to photos taken at the bar. Rittenhouse also did not notify the court within 24 hours of changing his address, according to prosecution attorney Binger. 

“We lost our son. How would you feel if the killer of your son was just able to walk free and make videos in bars and live it up?” Huber said.  “If he’s got all this backing, what is he afraid of?”

Rittenhouse’s original $2 million bail was paid by donations from supporters. He was released from the Kenosha County Jail in November 2020.

“The court has no idea where he is spending his time, and that’s a very unusual and dangerous situation when you have someone facing those types of charges in this case,” said Binger.

Binger asked the court what incentive Rittenhouse has to comply with the court, because he has no money invested in his own bond. He said Rittenhouse has more of an incentive to not come back to court because he is facing multiple charges and life in prison.

Mark Richards, Rittenhouse’s defense attorney, said Rittenhouse would “voluntarily return himself to jail” if the court ruled that would need to post additional bail.  He said Rittenhouse is not running and has not hid from the court.

Schroeder said that because Rittenhouse’s original bond terms did not include that he must disclose his place of abode, he did not violate his bond terms. To issue a warrant for arrest, the District Attorney would have to prove that the defendant broke the bond terms or committed another criminal offense, according to Schroeder.

“Being out on bail, essentially, is a privilege, and Mr. Rittenhouse has shown time and time again that he does not care about his bail conditions,” Motley said at the hearing.

Richards said the reason Rittenhouse did not initially update his address with the court is because “all it takes is one crackpot and there’s a problem.” He said Rittenhouse has received threats.

Binger said the people now living in Rittenhouse’s former address in Antioch, Illinois is now at risk of receiving threats that were intended for Rittenhouse. He said they are now in danger because Rittenhouse did not update his address with the court.

Schroeder said Rittenhouse is in violation for not updating his address, but that since Rittenhouse has been at the hearings when he was supposed to be, he did not see a need to raise the bail.

Huber raised a middle finger at the Zoom camera after Schroeder announced his decision to deny the motion.

Schroeder required Rittenhouse to disclose his location to the deputy clerk, the judge himself and the officer in charge of the case at the Sheriff’s office. He did not allow the District Attorney’s Office access to the address. The address will also be kept from the public record, according to Schroeder.

“My heart goes out to everybody who’s involved. This is a terrible thing, and that’s one of the reasons I feel so strongly that I want it to be handled peacefully, fairly and impartially,” said Schroeder.

Rittenhouse did not speak at the trail. He wore a medical mask and did not show any facial expressions throughout the hearing.

“From the moment he became a killer, he thought he was above the law,” said Huber.