Man Who Bought Gun For Kyle Rittenhouse Charged In Connection With Shootings

Kenosha, WI – The 19 year old who gave a gun to 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse the night he fatally shot two people during the Jacob Blake riots in Kenosha has been arrested and charged with two felonies.

Prosecutors said that Rittenhouse’s friend, Dominick Black, agreed to purchase the AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle because Rittenhouse wasn’t old enough to buy it for himself, WTMJ reported.

The complaint said that Rittenhouse gave Black the money to buy the gun and he purchased the Smith & Wesson M&P15 at the Ladysmith Ace Home Center.

Black and Rittenhouse agreed the gun would be stored at Black’s stepfather’s house in Kenosha because Rittenhouse didn’t have an Illinois Firearm Owner Identification card, WTMJ reported.

Black has been charged with two counts of intentionally giving a dangerous weapon to a person under 18, causing death.

If convicted, the 19 year old is facing up to six years in prison on each felony count, WTMJ reported.

Rittenhouse’s attorneys have said the 17 year old had just finished up a shift at his summer job lifeguarding when he met up with Black in Kenosha to help clean graffiti off a school building on Aug. 25.

Then they heard about a business owner who needed help defending his business, so they armed themselves and volunteered, WTMJ reported.

The criminal complaint charging Black said that Black and Rittenhouse met up at Black’s stepfather’s house and Black gave his 17-year-old friend the gun he had illegally purchased for him.

Later that night, Rittenhouse shot three people – killing two – as he was pursued by an angry mob through the streets of Kenosha.

The teen was arrested the next day at his home in Lake County, Illinois and held pending extradition.

Wisconsin authorities charged Rittenhouse with five felony charges including first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, and a misdemeanor charge for possession of a dangerous weapon by a minor, WEAR reported.

Both The New York Times analysis of the Kenosha riot videos and the criminal complaint charging Rittenhouse with the shootings suggest the 17 year old may have been acting in self-defense when he pulled the trigger.

The New York Times reported that for two hours prior to the shooting, Rittenhouse was with a group who said they were protecting private property at a gas station.

He rendered medical aid to protesters during that time, according to the newspaper.

But when Rittenhouse walked away from the car dealership a couple hours later, police would not let him return.

His attorney said in the press release that Rittenhouse had become concerned about protesters who were injured in the rioting and left his spot to go offer medical aid, WTMJ reported.

Six minutes later, video footage from the riots showed the 17 year old running for his life with a group of people chasing him, The New York Times reported.

The shootings were captured on cell phone video and raised many questions about whether Rittenhouse could be held accountable if he had been defending himself.

An Illinois judge approved extradition to Wisconsin for Rittenhouse on Oct. 30, WTMJ reported.

Attorneys for Rittenhouse have sought to delay or prevent the extradition process several times.

Rittenhouse’s lawyers had argued that the charges against their client were politically motivated, but the judge was nonplussed.

“This Illinois court shall not examine any potential political impact a Wisconsin District Attorney potentially considered in his charging decision,” Novak said in a six-page ruling.

He said it wasn’t his job as a judge in Illinois to “reevaluate probable cause determined by a Wisconsin court,” according to the Associated Press.

A Wisconsin judge ordered the teen charged with killing two people during the Kenosha riots held on a $2 million bond on Nov. 2.