The prosecutors wanted to introduce a lot of evidence would be aimed at smearing Rittenhouse in front of the jury.
- Portray him as violent because he once interceded in a fight on behalf of his sister.
- Portray him as being part of the Proud Boys.
- Introduce evidence from left-wing sources that the Proud Boys are a villainous group.
- Demonize him for previously calling 911 when he witnessed looting.
- Demonize him for spending his stimulus check on a gun.
The defense had filed challenges to all of these things. The judge disallowed much of this, and said he was leaning towards dismissing more but needed time to deliberate.
They also wanted the judge to to allow them to subpoena the list of donors to Kyle Rittenhouse’s legal defense fund. The donors would then be publicly doxed, and prosecutors would look for people on the list that could be used to bias the jury. The judge flat out denied this and chastised the prosecutors for even requesting it.
The judge also ruled that Joseph Rosenbaum’s criminal history as a serial child sex offender could not be introduced as evidence because it would bias the jury. This was a victory for the prosecution.
