MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A federal judge in Wisconsin ruled Wednesday that a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the father of a man shot and killed by Kyle Rittenhouse during a 2020 protest can proceed against Rittenhouse, police officers and others.
The father of Anthony Huber, one of two men shot and killed by Rittenhouse, filed the lawsuit in 2021, accusing officers of allowing a dangerous situation that violated his son’s constitutional rights and resulted in his death . Anthony Huber’s father, John Huber, also alleged that Rittenhouse, who was 17 at the time of the shootings, conspired with law enforcement to harm protesters. John Huber is seeking unspecified damages from city officials, officers and Rittenhouse.
U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman on Wednesday denied motions filed by Rittenhouse and the government’s defendants to dismiss the civil rights lawsuit.
Allowing the case against Rittenhouse and the others to proceed, the judge said Anthony Huber’s death “may be considered to have been caused immediately by the actions of the government’s defendants.”
Rittenhouse attorney Shane Martin said in a telephone interview that it’s important to note that the ruling does not address the merits of the case, only allowing it to proceed to the next stage.
“While we respect the judge’s decision, we do not believe there is any evidence of conspiracy and we are confident, as a Kenosha jury determined, that Kyle’s actions that night were not wrongful and were taken in self-defense.” said Martin.
Lawyers and private investigators for John Huber spent more than 100 hours locating Rittenhouse, tracing addresses in seven states before finding his mother and sister’s home in Florida. The lawsuit was served on Rittenhouse’s sister, who said he was not home. Adelman said that was enough to qualify as served.
Rittenhouse had argued that the case against him should be dismissed because he failed to properly serve the lawsuit. Adelman rejected that, saying that Rittenhouse is “almost certainly evading service”.
“Rittenhouse has been deliberately coy about his whereabouts,” Adelman wrote. “While he denies living in Florida, he does not identify the place he believes to be his residence.”
Law enforcement lawyers and government officials who were charged did not immediately return emails asking for comment.
The ruling brings Anthony Huber’s family “one step closer to justice for the needless death of their son,” said Anand Swaminathan, one of the lawyers for parents John Huber and Karen Bloom.
“The Kenosha officials who created a powder keg situation through their actions tried to argue that they cannot be held responsible for their unconstitutional behavior; that argument was soundly rejected today,” Swaminathan said in a statement.
Rittenhouse was charged with murder, attempted manslaughter and reckless endangerment for killing Anthony Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum and wounding a third person with an AR-style semi-automatic rifle in the summer of 2020 during a tumultuous night of protests over the shooting of a black man, Jacob Blake, by a white Kenosha police officer.
Rittenhouse was cleared of all charges in November 2021 after testifying that he acted in self-defense. Rittenhouse’s actions became a flashpoint in the debate over guns, vigilance and racial injustice in the US.
Rittenhouse went to Kenosha from his home in nearby Antioch, Illinois, after businesses were looted and burned on the nights following Blake’s shooting. He joined other armed citizens on the street, carrying a gun that authorities said was bought for him illegally because he was underage.
Rittenhouse first killed Rosenbaum, 36, in the parking lot of a car dealership and as Rittenhouse ran from the scene, he tripped and fell. Anthony Huber, 26, hit Rittenhouse with his skateboard and tried to disarm him. Rittenhouse fell to the ground and shot and killed Anthony Huber, wounding protester Gaige Grosskreutz, 27.
This case is one of several ongoing civil lawsuits filed in response to the shootings. Grosskreutz filed a similar lawsuit against Rittenhouse last year.
Rittenhouse has maintained a high public profile, especially on social media, where he is an outspoken advocate for gun rights. He has nearly 1 million followers on Twitter and has spoken at Conservative rallies.
