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“Inexcusable”, “Jury intimidation”, were some of the reactions of gun experts and others after Assistant District Attorney Thomas Binger pointed an AR-15 rifle at the jury during the Kyle Rittenhouse trial on Monday.

Rittenhouse, 18, faces multiple charges for shooting three Antifa protestors, killing 2 of them, during a night of unrest that erupted in Kenosha, WI after a police officer shot and wounded Jacob Blake.

Gun experts accused Binger of violating the 5 basic rules of gun safety by pointing a gun at the jury with his finger on the trigger.

Binger claims someone checked the rifle to make sure it was unloaded, but Binger never checked the rifle himself before pointing it at the jury.

The first rule of gun safety is the gun is always loaded.

The jury will begin deliberating Rittenhouse’s guilt or innocence today, Nov. 16. Observers are concerned that the prosecutor’s actions during closing arguments on Monday will negatively influence the jury.

Many believe Binger was attempting to intimidate the jury since the trial didn’t go his way. Others accused the lead prosecutor of intentionally pulling a stunt to get a mistrial.

Rittenhouse, who lives part-time with his father in Kenosha, drove just over the border from his mother’s home in Antioch, Illinois the night of the protests in August 2020.

He was 17 at the time of the shootings and armed with a borrowed AR-15 assault rifle. He said he went there to help protect a car dealership from rioters.

The Judge threw out a weapons possession charge against Rittenhouse, since Wisconsin law permits youths under 18 to carry long guns for hunting purposes.