Julio Rosas describes chaos in Kenosha that left two dead
Townhall.com's Julio Rosas joins Guy Benson with insight on 'The Guy Benson Show.'
Violence that followed the Jacob Blake shooting in Kenosha, Wis., turned fatal Tuesday night, and Townhall.com reporter Julio Rosas of Townhall.com provided an eyewitness account on Fox News Radio’s "Guy Benson Show" Wednesday.
According to Rosas, the Kenosha County Courthouse was fenced off to prevent damage but rioters torn down the gate anyway, after which officers used tear gas on the crowd.
“At that point, the officers inside the courthouse came out, used pepper balls, tear gas to push people back after giving multiple warnings,” he said. “They declared unlawful assembly and they pushed everybody out of the park. But they didn't leave.”
The riots continued in nearby streets, where armed civilians protecting businesses and property were confronted by armed rioters, resulting in shots being fired on both ends.
“While [civilians] are supportive of the protests, the peaceful protests, they draw the line in the sand of, 'OK, we’re not going to let you guys riot and destroy Kenosha over this,'" he said. "And so, that's where we saw the confrontations, and then that's when we eventually saw the shooting between two groups.”
Rosas said it seemed that the civilians protecting their property were more heavily armed, with rifles and handguns.
JACOB BLAKE PROTESTS PUT KENOSHA COUNTY 'UNDER ATTACK,' OFFICIALS TELL WISCONSIN GOVERNOR
Seventeen-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse was arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder in connection with a shooting that killed two people and wounded one more. But Rosas, who witnessed the shooting, said he doesn’t think there was any premeditation.
“You have to keep in mind that the whole reason why they came out in the first place is because for the past two days, the rioters have had their way with downtown Kenosha,” he said. “And I saw firsthand some of these armed civilians stopping the destruction in the city.”
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Rosas said he witnessed a group of rioters destroying cars in a parking lot and watched as one civilian defused the situation by verbally advising them to stop – without firing a single shot.
“We've seen this throughout any mass unrest or riots where people have had to kind of take security into their own hands," he said, "because, you know, the National Guard and the police had been mainly focused on protecting the county courthouse."
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