"Welcome to the Wild f--kin' West."
Kyle Rittenhouse has been found not guilty on all counts — and Twitter is in uproar.
The teenager was cleared first-degree intentional homicide, 2 counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, first-degree reckless homicide and first-degree attempted intentional homicide, after shooting two people dead and wounding a third with an AR-15 rifle during the Kenosha riots in August 2020.
His lawyers had argued it was in self-defense — and according Friday's verdict — successfully.
Not everybody on Twitter agreed:
What in the actual FUCK!? #KyleRittenhouse
— Andy Cohen (@Andy) November 19, 2021 @Andy
No words. Just utter fury. pic.twitter.com/rmPgorK5dv
— Sophia Bush (@SophiaBush) November 19, 2021 @SophiaBush
So Kyle knowingly asked a friend to illegally buy him a gun. Then he took that gun to an in person situation that he was not asked to be at. Murdered people. Took illegal gun across state lines. NOT GUILTY? He legit did all of this.
— Prentice Penny (@The_A_Prentice) November 19, 2021 @The_A_Prentice
The judge KNOWINGLY. I REPEAT KNOWINGLY worked this for a not guilty verdict.
— Prentice Penny (@The_A_Prentice) November 19, 2021 @The_A_Prentice
Not guilty. Welcome to the Wild fuckin' West.
— matthew lillard —Will block. 0-F’s-given (@MatthewLillard) November 19, 2021 @MatthewLillard
The violence that is coming will be unprecedented. #godsaveusall
The verdict has shown that it remains legal to murder while white
— FINNEAS (@finneas) November 19, 2021 @finneas
Unconscionable. https://t.co/csyfYaZRVz
— Ray Fisher (@ray8fisher) November 19, 2021 @ray8fisher
No surprise there.
— Rick Gonzalez (@officialrickg) November 19, 2021 @officialrickg
The fact that #KyleRittenhouse has been found NOT guilty on all counts after killing two people in cold blood shows the world EXACTLY what type of country America really is. SMH.
— Dr. Wendy Osefo (@WendyOsefo) November 19, 2021 @WendyOsefo
Ugh fucking Wisconsin & America.
— Jonathan Van Ness (@jvn) November 19, 2021 @jvn
It has now been put it out there that vigilantes can just go and kill people protesting issues like racial equality whenever they want and get away with it. Think about that for a second.
— Josh Gad (@joshgad) November 19, 2021 @joshgad
Tell me again there are not two kinds justice in America!
— LeVar Burton (@levarburton) November 19, 2021 @levarburton
America is such a stupid bitch
— Best Coast (@BestCoast) November 19, 2021 @BestCoast
Disgusted. And what a dangerous precedent to set. (Or upkeep, really) They’re going to make him a cop aren’t they? https://t.co/Ns7qRgQ411 pic.twitter.com/dlHHijExPo
— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) November 19, 2021 @jameelajamil
Stark reminder of inequity.
— Ana Navarro-Cárdenas (@ananavarro) November 19, 2021 @ananavarro
Rittenhouse killed two men w/an AR-15. Found not guilty.
Tamir Rice was shot by police for having a toy gun.
Christopher Belter raped 4 girls. Given no jail time.
Two men were exonerated after serving decades for Malcom X murder they did not commit.
I feel broken with this news
— ✌🏼rosanna arquette (@RoArquette) November 19, 2021 @RoArquette
I have no faith in the justice system In America today I don’t want to live in a country that is ruled by violent ignorant racists.
— ✌🏼rosanna arquette (@RoArquette) November 19, 2021 @RoArquette
The good news is that white men & boys can still kill whoever they want and do NO jail time! Isn’t that fun! 😃
— yvette nicole brown (@YNB) November 19, 2021 @YNB
And he killed white people!
I bet little #KyleRittenhouse is gonna go right out and take some more white power pics with #TheProudBoys & plan his next massacre. 👌🏻
Terrifying day in America. #RittenhouseVerdict
— Kristen Schaal (@kristenschaaled) November 19, 2021 @kristenschaaled
This trial was a joke.
— Aisha Tyler (@aishatyler) November 19, 2021 @aishatyler
Unfortunately, in America, it’s a very old, very ghoulish, very evil joke.
Rittenhouse found not guilty in murder trial https://t.co/Ufv5gXKoYS via @TheWrap
wanna be a supreme court justice
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) November 19, 2021 @pattonoswalt
wanna murder 2 people & not go to jail better
1) cut some onions
2) be white
(MUSIC CUE: “Cherry Pie”)
Ha, let the boy be black and it would’ve been life…hell he would’ve had his life taken before the bullshit trial.. sad
— Bubba Wallace (@BubbaWallace) November 19, 2021 @BubbaWallace
Absolutely sickened. #Kenosha #rittenhouseisguilty
— Peter Paige (@ThePeterPaige) November 19, 2021 @ThePeterPaige
Honestly hope that kid takes the opportunity to turn his life around and tries to make the world a better place rather than pursuing the George Zimmerman Life Trajectory.
— Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) November 19, 2021 @chrislhayes
Nobody is surprised, but that doesn’t mean outrage isn’t appropriate.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) November 19, 2021 @jemelehill
This is a devastating blow.
— Emmy Rossum (@emmyrossum) November 19, 2021 @emmyrossum
#KyleRittenhouse will be a cop in 3 years! #TeamDl
— DL Hughley (@RealDLHughley) November 19, 2021 @RealDLHughley
#WhiteTears are magic! #TeamDl
— DL Hughley (@RealDLHughley) November 19, 2021 @RealDLHughley
This is bad, but the part where he becomes a full-time folk hero is going to be much, much worse.
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) November 19, 2021 @DaveHolmes
We knew. Doesn’t make it any easier but we all knew. Turn off the TV. Jump off social media. Get outside if you can and check on those you love. #SameRacistCountryDifferentRacistDay
— DB Woodside (@dbwofficial) November 19, 2021 @dbwofficial
Another disappointing victory for White vigilantism
— Cary Elwes (@Cary_Elwes) November 19, 2021 @Cary_Elwes
I knew Rittenhouse would be acquitted but it is gutting to witness the inevitable, to know there will be no consequences for the judge, and to know Rittenhouse and others like him will be more emboldened to be openly white supremacist vigilantes. It's hollowing.
— roxane gay (@rgay) November 19, 2021 @rgay
throw the whole country in the fucking bin
— Jodie (@MissJodie) November 19, 2021 @MissJodie
The Rittenhouse jury just gave Biden his second colonoscopy of the day.
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 19, 2021 @DonaldJTrumpJr
The verdict in the #KyleRittenhouseTrial is a reminder of the treacherous role that white supremacy and privilege play within our justice system.
— Derrick Johnson (@DerrickNAACP) November 19, 2021 @DerrickNAACP
When Judge Crazy MFer gets elected unopposed in the town of Mayberry KKKenosha, it's no wonder a jury of his yahoo peers set a bloodthirsty murderous bully with a big gun, free. May the families of the two VICTIMS who this deranged delinquent, slaughtered, somehow find peace.
— Nancy Lee Grahn (@NancyLeeGrahn) November 19, 2021 @NancyLeeGrahn
What a disaster. The precedent is terrifying. The injustice is hard to stomach.
— Brooklyn Decker (@BrooklynDecker) November 19, 2021 @BrooklynDecker
kyle rittenhouse being acquitted on all charges after such heinous heinous crimes is the epitome of white privilege and exactly what is wrong with this godforsaken country.
— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) November 19, 2021 @rachelzegler
The rage I feel… This country is so fucking broken.
— Meredith Salenger (@MeredthSalenger) November 19, 2021 @MeredthSalenger
Welcome to America 😡🙏🏿🙏🏿 https://t.co/mQmGH5e5J7
— Viola Davis (@violadavis) November 19, 2021 @violadavis
John Huber and Karen Bloom, parents of murderer #KyleRittenhouse’s victim Anthony Huber: the verdict “sends the unacceptable message that armed civilians can show up in any town, incite violence, and then use the danger they have created to justify shooting people in the street.” pic.twitter.com/zhfMCIsXIk
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) November 19, 2021 @ava
Justice denied is a body blow to our national psyche. On trial was not only a killer, but a system that continues to kill.
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) November 19, 2021 @GeorgeTakei
Today that system defeated true justice, once again. But mark these words: We will never stop fighting for what is right and just.
— Garcelle Beauvais (@GarcelleB) November 19, 2021 @GarcelleB
No peace…..still no justice 😖😔
— Aly & AJ (@alyandaj) November 19, 2021 @alyandaj
This is a scary day for America.
— Van Jones (@VanJones68) November 19, 2021 @VanJones68
This acquittal could be seen as a dangerous green light for vigilantes —who might feel empowered to travel to any protest anywhere, provoke attacks & then shoot people in the streets. #KyleRittenhouse https://t.co/eZEXM27zJ7
This is a scary day for America.
— Van Jones (@VanJones68) November 19, 2021 @VanJones68
This acquittal could be seen as a dangerous green light for vigilantes —who might feel empowered to travel to any protest anywhere, provoke attacks & then shoot people in the streets. #KyleRittenhouse https://t.co/eZEXM27zJ7
hey- what in the entire fuck?????!!!!! fuck this shit. the system is a joke. https://t.co/bVlHUSS2tw
— JoJo. (@iamjojo) November 19, 2021 @iamjojo
The families of those killed deserve justice and even that has now been taken from them too. My thoughts are with them.
— David Hogg (@davidhogg111) November 19, 2021 @davidhogg111
The Rittenhouse verdict gives them permission to kill. I've lost the definition of right and wrong.
— Patti LuPone (@PattiLuPone) November 19, 2021 @PattiLuPone
I knew Rittenhouse would be acquitted but it is gutting to witness the inevitable, to know there will be no consequences for the judge, and to know Rittenhouse and others like him will be more emboldened to be openly white supremacist vigilantes. It's hollowing.
— roxane gay (@rgay) November 19, 2021 @rgay
Let's face it. The judge set Kyle Rittenhouse free. He did so from the day he said those murdered were not victims. Vigilante murder in Wisconsin is now a thing.
— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) November 19, 2021 @fred_guttenberg
The Rittenhouse case has pulled back the curtain on profound cracks in our justice system — from deep bias routinely and unabashedly displayed by the judge, to apathy of officers who witnessed Rittenhouse’s actions and did nothing.
— Ben Crump (@AttorneyCrump) November 19, 2021 @AttorneyCrump
Kyle Rittenhouse Sentenced To 45 Years Of CPAC Appearances https://t.co/gkPos3h7nI pic.twitter.com/OtHViwbyT1
— The Onion (@TheOnion) November 19, 2021 @TheOnion
There were some from the conservative side of Twitter however, who felt the verdict was the correct one:
The jury got it right—finding Rittenhouse not guilty on all charges. The fact that charges were brought before any serious investigation is evidence that the government was motivated by politics, which itself should be considered criminal.
— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) November 19, 2021 @TulsiGabbard
NOT GUILTY.
— Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) November 19, 2021 @RealCandaceO
Kyle Rittenhouse is free.
The criminal mob corporate enterprise that is masquerading as a movement concerned about black lives— FAILS.
Justice wins the day.
Not guilty was the correct verdict. Anyone with a prefrontal cortex who had watched the trial for more than 30 seconds knew this. Anyone who says differently is a lying hack.
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) November 19, 2021 @benshapiro
The Rittenhouse jury just gave Biden his second colonoscopy of the day.
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 19, 2021 @DonaldJTrumpJr
Justice was done. Kyle Rittenhouse was unfairly maligned by a dishonest press, and politicians who used him to advance their own fortunes. If there are riots, these smear merchants will shoulder much of the blame.
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) November 19, 2021 @megynkelly
Madison Cawthorn offers Kyle Rittenhouse “an internship,” says he isn’t guilty, and tells followers to also “be armed and dangerous.” pic.twitter.com/m3EHnp5EOD
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) November 19, 2021 @patriottakes