A judge agreed to delay the extradition hearing for Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old accused of fatally shooting two people this week during protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, until Sept. 25.
Rittenhouse, who faces several felony charges, is awaiting a decision on whether he should be returned to Wisconsin to face charges from Illinois, where he’s currently held at Lake County’s juvenile justice center.
The judge in Waukegan, Illinois, postponed the hearing on Friday after Rittenhouse requested the delay in order to have time to hire a private attorney, according to the Associated Press.
Lee Filas, spokesman for the Lake County state’s attorney, said Rittenhouse plans to hire Los Angeles-based attorney John Pierce and that Rittenhouse’s presence on Friday had been waived after he did not appear during the livestreamed hearing.
Filas added that Rittenhouse will have a similar chance at the Sept. 25 extradition to waive his right to an extradition hearing.
Rittenhouse was charged on Thursday with first-degree reckless homicide, two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, first-degree intentional homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide, and possession of a dangerous weapon.
Under Wisconsin law, Rittenhouse would be tried as an adult and could receive a sentence up to life in prison.
He was taken into custody on Wednesday in Antioch, Illinois, where he lives. Antioch is about 15 miles from Kenosha, where protesters have been gathering in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
Two people died, and another was injured in the shooting that took place Tuesday evening.
In videos that circulated around social media, Rittenhouse, who was armed with a semiautomatic rifle, claimed he and other armed individuals who were out on the streets this week were out there to protect property and businesses from looting and destruction.
