If the Rittenhouse Trial was Local, Here’s the Law

Many folks have been watching the Kyle Rittenhouse trial regarding the events in Kenosha Wisconsin. The video below is a refresher of what happened.

I would imagine the laws on self-defense are different in every state. What if the Rittenhouse shooting had taken place in the state of Washington? This trial is not really talking about the stand-your-ground law or the defense of property, which does not allow deadly force. It's about the use of deadly force in self-defense.

There is a lot of legal mumbo-jumbo with this naturally. To put it in plain terms, a person must produce evidence that deadly force was reasonable. In other words, was there an imminent threat? Did you fear for your life? Was the other person trying to kill you?

If you feel like you were just going to get beaten up and not killed, in the state of Washington you cannot use deadly force. For a full rundown on the use of force, including deadly force, in self-defense I think this article from washingtongunlaw.com spells it out nicely. Click HERE to read it.

And remember, if anyone hands you a gun and tells you it's unloaded...check it anyway.