Jan. 29 (UPI) — The rifle Kyle Rittenhouse used to shoot three people will be destroyed, a judge ruled Friday.
Kenosha County Circuit Judge Judge Bruce Schroeder, who oversaw the trial, agreed to the settlement Friday, while Kenosha County Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger said the assault-style rifle will be destroyed by Wisconsin’s state crime lab, CBS reported.
Rittenhouse killed two people and wounded a third in Kenosha with that rifle Aug. 25, 2020, during racial justice protests. He was acquitted of all charges for the shootings last November.
Rittenhouse, 19, filed a motion in court earlier this month, attempting to get the rifle back and said at the time his intention was to destroy the weapon.
The agreement between Rittenhouse’s lawyers and the district attorney’s office means the weapon will be destroyed, most likely in April, while other items like clothing and a face mask will be returned to him, Newsweek said.
Since his acquittal, Rittenhouse has said his intention was to destroy the Smith & Wesson rifle to avoid having it become a symbol that glorifies the shootings.
He will also destroy the other items returned to him, according to Newsweek.
Rittenhouse was 17 when he shot and killed Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, while wounding Gaige Grosskreutz during the protests in Kenosha, which came days after the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man.
Earlier in January, the man who bought the rifle for Rittenhouse agreed to take a plea deal.
Dominick Black, 20, pleaded no contest to contributing to the delinquency of a minor, a non-criminal citation that carries a fine of $2,000, while avoiding convictions for two felony counts of delivering a dangerous weapon to a minor resulting in death.
