Letters of support, criticism pour into Kenosha courthouse for Rittenhouse trial judge

KENOSHA — People everywhere have been following the Kyle Rittenhouse trial through various online streams. Many of them have sent their thoughts to the presiding judge, Bruce Schroeder.

From expletive-laden abuse, to praise and blessings, and even some legal advice, the unsolicited input arrives by email, fax and even old-fashioned postcards decorated with orioles, a doll and the Hungarian parliament building. And the Clerk of Court enters them all into the docket in Rittenhouse's case.

Some emails are pretty long and detailed in their critiques. They call Schroeder biased, unethical, racist and technologically ignorant.

More:Jury in Kyle Rittenhouse case stays out after first day of deliberations

Some are short. "Your judge needs to be fired. This is ridiculous this judge is dong nothing but giving this kid a free ride ..." James Skrabacz said.

Someone called "American Citizen" wrote, "You are disgrace to the bench. You are a senile old piece of crap. God will judge you accordingly."  Another described called out the judge's "fawning gaze" at the defendant.

Those against conviction have also weighed in.

Jeffrey Meyer from Palm Springs, Calif., wrote: "I believe Kyle acted in self defense and wanted to please express my unbiased opinion as well as express my gratitude for your  honor's application of blind justice."

Veronica Carbajal, of Houston, told Schroeder, "I am asking you again to drop all charges against Kyle Rittenhouse immediately, and give him and his family the protection they desperately need." She also accused BLM activists of staging events "in order to put their enemies in prison for life!"

"Thank you, sir, for not wavering or taking a political stance on this case," wrote Mark Beswick. "You are a man of integrity."

More:How the Kyle Rittenhouse jury was narrowed

A letter from Shanhai Kaimao LLP, a law firm in China, read: "Dear Judge Schroeder,  We read in recent news reports that you have been receiving a great deal of unpleasant mail, so we thought you might appreciate a change. Thank you for your stubborn commitment to fairness and due process."

Hanna Johnson opined that social media companies had censored videos that would exonerate Rittenhouse, so no video should be allowed in evidence. Someone else warned — in a several page letter — about possible copyright violations from using the videos.

More than dozen activists and citizen journalists were livestreaming the night of Aug. 25, 2020, in the minutes leading up, during, and after Rittenhouse fatally shot two people and wounded a third during chaotic milling about that followed protests

Mathos02@yahoo.com send a three-page, singe-spaced letter citing several state statutes and a legal case to argue for Rittenhouse's acquittal. He said the case "will materially alter how citizens perceive their rights under the Second Amendment," and may determine if the amendment "has suffered a form of constructive diminutions." 

Susan Arundale of New Hampshire said she's read about some of the things being sent to Schroder. "It disappoints me that people threaten others because they are not getting what they want. I want you to know that there are many people who respect the difficult job that you are doing and admire your handling of this case."

The volume of communications picked up rapidly after Schroeder, a pre-trial hearing, ordered that prosecutors could not refer the people Rittenhouse shot as victims, but the defense could call them looters, rioters and arsonists if the evidence supported the terms.

More:Gov. Tony Evers puts 500 Wisconsin National Guard troops on standby for Rittenhouse verdict

In very neat cursive, K. Holmes from New York wrote on a postcard, "The're is something wrong with a judge what refused to allow the dead person who was shot by a defendant to b named and called a victim. It is a lie to identify them as anything else."

Someone else mailed a page from a dictionary, with victim and its definition highlighted. 

No one appeared to have communicated an agreement with Schroeder's unusual ban on the word victim unless someone has been convicted of harming the person.

Contact Bruce Vielmetti at (414) 224-2187 or bvielmetti@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ProofHearsay.