The man charged with buying Kyle Rittenhouse an assault-style rifle, which the then 17-year-old used during an August 2020 protest in Kenosha, has reportedly agreed a plea deal to avoid major felony charges.
Dominick Black, 20, who was arrested and charged with two counts of delivering a dangerous weapon to a minor, resulting in the deaths of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, has agreed not to contest one non-criminal citation for “contributing to the delinquency of a minor”, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
Mr Black, the first witness called by the prosecution during the trial, was 18 when police say he bought an AR-15 rifle for Mr Rittenhouse at a hardware store in Rusk County in May, 2020. The rifle was then used to kill two people and wound a third during protests in Kenosha in August that year.
Mr Rittenhouse faced five felonies, including first-degree reckless homicide, first-degree intentional homicide and attempted first-degree intentional homicide, and two counts of recklessly endangering safety in the first degree, for opening fire on a group of protesters after they had been dispersed by police.
His attorneys argued that he went from his home in Antioch, Illinois, to Kenosha in Wisconsin to protect property from rioters and acted in self defence after he came under attack.
In November 2021, after a high-profile trial, a jury found Mr Rittenhouse not guilty and he was cleared of all charges in the deaths of Rosenbaum and Huber and the wounding of Gaige Grosskreutz.
The status of the charges against Mr Black was up in the air after the defence in Mr Rittenhouse’s case convinced Judge Bruce Schroeder that an exception in the law allows 17-year-olds to possess rifles.
Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger filed a proposed plea agreement on Friday, suggesting Mr Black would plead no contest to a pair of citations, and pay a $2,000 fine, and the felony counts would be dismissed. A hearing is reportedly scheduled for Mr Black’s case on Monday, where Judge Schroeder will be asked if he accepts the deal.
