Federal agents being sent to Kenosha, Wisconsin, after protests turn deadly
The White House said Wednesday that 1,000 National Guard and over 200 federal law enforcement personnel, which include members of the FBI and U.S. Marshals, will be deployed to Kenosha, Wisconsin, to quell protests that have turned deadly. President Trump tweeted earlier Wednesday that he would be sending in the National Guard, and the Justice Department tweeted that FBI and federal marshals will be sent to the city.
A 17-year-old is currently in custody after two people were shot to death and another was wounded during protests on Tuesday night in Kenosha. Protests erupted in the city after police shot Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, in the back several times on Sunday.
Graphic cell phone footage from Tuesday night's protests showed what appeared to be a White man with a semi-automatic rifle opening fire. The man with the gun was seen walking with hands up toward officers, who drove past him. The Lake County, Illinois State's Attorney's office said Kyle Rittenhouse was in bond court this morning regarding being a fugitive from justice in Wisconsin, and is being held on no bond.
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers said Wednesday that he had authorized 500 members of the state National Guard to assist local law enforcement. But the Republican Assembly Speaker, Robin Vos, criticized Evers, a Democrat, for not taking up Mr. Trump's offer to send in federal law enforcement earlier.
Earlier this summer, federal agents were deployed to Portland to deal with ongoing protests at the federal courthouse under an executive order issued by Mr. Trump called "Operation Diligent Valor." After weeks of violent clashes that included federal agents deploying tear gas and arrests and amid the pleas of local officials for the agents to leave, Oregon's governor said on July 30 the agents would withdraw from the city.
Mr. Trump has praised the actions of the federal agents in Portland, and said he would be deploying them to other cities to quell violence if needed. On Wednesday, he tweeted that Evers had "accepted federal assistance (Portland should do the same!)."
Adam Brewster and Andres Triay contributed reporting.
