One of three people shot by Kyle Rittenhouse at a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin last year, and the only survivor, testified at Rittenhouse’s trial Monday. Protester and volunteer medic Gaige Grosskreutz was shot in the arm that night. In trial testimony, part of which is shown in the video above, the survivor said he pointed his own gun at Rittenhouse. However, Grosskreutz also said he didn’t mean to point his gun, and had no intention of shooting Rittenhouse.
“I was never trying to kill the defendant,” Grosskreutz said. “That was never, ever something that I was trying to do and that moment. I was trying to preserve my own life.”
Grosskreutz said he had gone to the protest in Kenosha to serve as a medic. He wore a hat that said “paramedic” and carried medical supplies, in addition to a loaded pistol. At trial, the survivor said he went into action after seeing Rittenhouse kill a man just feet away.
“In my right hand, I had my Glock pistol. And in my left hand, I had my cellphone,” Grosskruetz said when asked what he was holding when he approached Rittenhouse. When asked about what he was thinking at the time, Grosskreutz responded, “that I was going to die”.
During cross examination at the trial, Rittenhouse attorney Corey Chirafisi tried to paint Grosskreutz as dishonest. Chirafisi accused Grosskreutz of lying when he initially told multiple police officers that he dropped his weapon before he was shot.
“So you, in these documents that you are filing in the courts, you are leaving out the fact that you had possessed a firearm when you were shot? Right,” Chirafisi asked. Grosskreutz responded “that is correct”.
Chirafisi also asked the survivor if he told his former roommate that Grosskreutz regretted “not killing the kid and hesitating to pull the gun before emptying the entire mag into him.” Grosskreutz denied saying that.
In addition, Chirafisi pointed to Grosskreutz’s lawsuit against the city of Kenosha. He alleges police enabled the violence by allowing an armed militia to run through the streets during protests.
“How this case turns out has a has an impact on your ability to try to collect your ten million. Right,” Chirafisi asked, to which Grosskreutz responded, “that’s correct”.
Chirafisi followed up by asking “so if he’s convicted, Mr. Rittenhouse is convicted, your chance of getting 10 million bucks is better. Right?”
“I’m not entirely sure how that plays out,” Grosskreutz responded.
