Residents say Joseph Rosenbaum, who was the first man Kyle Rittenhouse fatally shot in self-defense would be alive today if justice has been served in Pima County, Arizona. On Friday, a Kenosha, Wisconsin jury found Rittenhouse not guilty of killing Rosenbaum, who had been chasing Rittenhouse before the teenager shot in self-defense.
According to the court testimony, Rittenhouse said that he acted in self-defense after Rosenbaum threatened to kill him and tried to grab his gun. However, say Pima County residents, Rittenhouse would have never found himself in a position where he had to defend himself from a violent child molester had the Pima County Attorney’s Office done its job and kept Rosenbaum locked up.
Rosenbaum had multiple convictions in Pima County, spending just over 14 years in prison. He served the first 10 years on his first rape charge. However, for the two other rape charges he only received sentences of 30 months.
WRN Investigates reported that Rosenbaum was charged by a grand jury with 11 counts of child molestation and inappropriate sexual activity around children, including anal rape. The victims were five boys ranging in age from nine to 11 years old.
According to Yahoo News, “Hours before the fatal encounter, Rosenbaum had been released from a local hospital in the wake of a suicide attempt. He had pending charges in Wisconsin for alleged domestic abuse and jumping bail at the time of his death.”
Rittenhouse, who has family in Kenosha, was cleaning up graffiti, protecting small businesses from looters, and providing medical aid after nights of protests when he was attacked.
Arizona State Rep. Daniel Hernandez, who represents Pima County residents, tweeted on Friday after the Kenosha jury found Rittenhouse not guilty, “My heart goes out to the families of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber.”
The 26-year-old Huber, according to Yahoo News, “chased after Rittenhouse and hit him with a skateboard. Rittenhouse then shot Huber once in the chest. Wisconsin court documents show that Huber was convicted of domestic abuse and disorderly conduct in 2018. He also served a prison stint in 2012 for choking his brother.”
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