Tiffany Cross, the host of MSNBC’s Cross Connection, pondered on Twitter about how the judge in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial could be removed from the case and accused him of bias after clips went viral of him berating the prosecution for its conduct during the trial.
Moments after Rittenhouse himself broke down and sobbed uncontrollably on the stand, Judge Bruce Schroeder ordered the jury out of the room and subsequently reprimanded the prosecution for questioning Rittenhouse’s post-arrest silence during the trial and referencing evidence that had been excluded under terms agreed in the pretrial hearing.
KYLE RITTENHOUSE SOBS IN COURT AS HE TAKES STAND, JUDGE CALLS RECESS
“The judge is CLEARLY BIASED!!!!!!” Cross tweeted, later asking, “How can this judge be removed?”
The judge is CLEARLY BIASED!!!!!!
— @tiffanydcross (@TiffanyDCross) November 10, 2021
Honestly. @ElieNYC how can this judge be removed?
— @tiffanydcross (@TiffanyDCross) November 10, 2021
Elie Mystal, a justice correspondent for The Nation and an MSNBC contributor, responded to Cross, saying: “Realistically, he can’t be. He’s elected. Even if he’s disciplined later by the state (which he won’t be) there’s nothing for it for *this* trial. And if he gets off, he can’t be re-tried because of Double Jeopardy. So, like I said two weeks ago, Rittenhouse is gonna walk.”
Mystal stirred some controversy on social media recently for comments he made suggesting that white, non-college-educated voters supported Republicans in the Virginia and New Jersey 2021 gubernatorial races in part because they care about “using their guns on black people and getting away with it.”
Schroeder was first appointed to the court in 1983 by Wisconsin Gov. Anthony Earl, a Democrat. He has been reelected to the court multiple times, including most recently in 2020 for a term that lasts until 2026, according to Ballotpedia. A story by the Washington Post published on Wednesday characterized the judge as being generally defense-happy.
“For a jury trial, if you get him, you are happy as a defense attorney,” Michael Cicchini, a criminal defense lawyer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, told the outlet.
WATCH: Judge in Rittenhouse case berates prosecutor over line of questioning.
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) November 10, 2021
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Rittenhouse, 18, is facing charges for killing two people and injuring one during the 2020 protests in Wisconsin. There are six charges against him, including first-degree reckless homicide, first-degree recklessly endangering safety, first-degree intentional homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide, and possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18. The judge previously dismissed an additional charge against him for violating curfew.
