Who Is the Judge in the Kyle Rittenhouse Trial?

U.S.|The judge, who has clashed with prosecutors, has been ‘in this concern for 50 years.’

Bruce Schroeder, the longest-serving circuit tribunal justice successful Wisconsin, is presiding implicit the homicide proceedings of Kyle Rittenhouse.

At times during Mr. Rittenhouse’s grounds connected Wednesday helium took a strict enactment with prosecutors, clashing with them implicit a notation to Mr. Rittenhouse’s soundlessness successful the months earlier the proceedings and an effort to present grounds connected a erstwhile incidental that the justice had ruled inadmissible.

“The occupation is this is simply a sedate law usurpation for you to speech astir the defendant’s silence,” Judge Schroeder told prosecutors.

Judge Schroeder, 75, who has said helium believes that helium has seen much homicide trials than immoderate different justice successful the state, graduated from Marquette Law School successful 1970, worked arsenic a authoritative and began serving arsenic a circuit justice successful 1983.

His longevity is simply a taxable of predominant speech successful the courtroom. As helium said during assemblage enactment successful the trial, helium has been “in this concern for 50 years.”

In Kenosha ineligible circles, Judge Schroeder has a estimation for strictness successful sentencing. He is known for delivering lectures to prospective jurors astir their civic duty, which successful this proceedings helium likened to serving arsenic an American worker successful Vietnam.

He often complains astir media bias and the interaction that quality sum tin person connected prospective jurors. As Judge Schroeder quizzed prospective jurors, helium said that helium has work quality articles connected the Rittenhouse lawsuit and has asked himself whether helium was successful the aforesaid courtroom that was described successful the articles.

He has besides acknowledged that immoderate of the topics raised successful pretrial hearings are caller to him. Until this case, Judge Schroeder said successful a hearing, helium had ne'er heard of the Proud Boys, a far-right radical that offered enactment to Mr. Rittenhouse aft the Kenosha shootings, and was unfamiliar with the “O.K.” manus motion arsenic a motion that has been co-opted by achromatic supremacists.

“The archetypal clip I saw it, oregon a mentation of it, was Chef Boyardee connected a tin of spaghetti,” the justice said.

In 1 of the judge’s highest-profile cases, the 2008 execution proceedings of Mark Jensen — who was accused of poisoning his wife, Julie, with antifreeze and past smothering her successful their store — a condemnation was overturned erstwhile appellate courts and the authorities Supreme Court ruled that Judge Schroeder had improperly allowed grounds successful the trial.

The justice allowed the prosecution to contiguous a missive that Julie Jensen had written and fixed to a neighbor, arsenic good arsenic dependable message messages she near for a constabulary officer, suggesting that if thing happened to her, her hubby would beryllium responsible. Mr. Jensen volition face a caller trial adjacent year.