Thomas Binger is the lead prosecutor in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial. Here's more on the Kenosha County assistant district attorney
Prosecutor Thomas Binger has been center stage in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial.
The burden is on Binger and the state to prove to the jury that Rittenhouse committed the crimes that he's charged with in the fatal shootings of two individuals and wounding of a third during unrest in Kenosha last year days after Jacob Blake was shot by a Kenosha police officer.
On Wednesday, all eyes were on Binger after the judge lashed out at the Kenosha County assistant district attorney twice. In one instance, Judge Bruce Schroeder chastised Binger for his line of questioning of the teenager during cross-examination, and in another for bringing up evidence that he previously ruled was off limits.
The defense has called for a mistrial with prejudice, saying Binger acted with "prosecutorial overreach."
As the trial continues into its ninth day here's more on Binger.
Who is Thomas Binger, the top prosecutor in the Rittenhouse trial?
Binger is an assistant district attorney in the Kenosha County District Attorney's Office. He's one of 15 assistant DAs for Kenosha County.
How long has Binger worked in the Kenosha County District Attorney's Office?
Six years. Binger joined the Kenosha County DA's Office in 2015.
Binger has had aspirations to run for a district attorney position
He ran unsuccessfully for DA in Racine County, the county just north of Kenosha, in 2016.
What did Binger say in the first instance that made Judge Bruce Schroeder react so strongly toward him?
Binger said he wanted to establish that Rittenhouse, who took the stand on the eighth day of the trial, has benefitted from hearing more than a week of testimony and that he could tailor his narrative of the events with that information. Binger told the judge that Rittenhouse has also conducted interviews previously with media, something the judge wasn't aware of.
Nonetheless, Schroeder lambasted Binger, saying his questioning functioned as a commentary on Rittenhouse's silence during the trial.
“You’re right on the borderline,” Schroeder told Binger.
He later told Binger he was "astonished" that the assistant DA would comment on Rittenhouse's pre-trial silence. Schroeder excused the jury before condemning Binger.
Why would Binger present evidence that Schroeder said wasn't allowed?
Binger brought up a previous incident in which Rittenhouse witnessed someone apparently shoplifting at a CVS store 15 days before the fatal shootings in Kenosha and was caught on video mentioning he would like to have his gun to shoot them.
Binger said he thought given the course of the trial it offered clues into Rittenhouse's state of mind and motivations, and thought the judge left "the door open" to bring it up.
Schroeder said he didn't see any similarities between Rittenhouse's comments about the shoplifters and the night of the shootings.
"(The evidence) isn't coming in no matter what you think," Schroeder told him.
Binger said he acted in good faith in presenting it to the jury.
Schroeder wasn't buying it.
"When you say you were acting in good faith, I don't believe you," Schroeder said.
At one point, Schroeder scolded him during an uncomfortable moment: "Don't get brazen with me."
The judge also told Binger: “I don’t want to have another issue as long as this case continues. Is that clear?"
The jury did not witness this back-and-forth between Binger and Schroeder.
Defense said Binger might want a mistrial
The defense has called for a mistrial with prejudice, a major development in the case. If Schroeder would declare a mistrial, Rittenhouse could not be retried.
Mark Richards, the lead defense attorney, suggested Binger was looking for a mistrial (likely because the case appears to be going against the state).
“Mr. Binger is either ignoring the court’s rulings or attempting to provoke a mistrial,” Richards said.
The judge said he would rule later and take the defense's motion "under advisement."
Binger and Schroeder didn't see eye to eye before the trial
Before the trial started, Schroeder made a decision that was controversial and might have set the stage for some disagreements between the state and judge.
Schroeder said the men Rittenhouse shot could not be called victims, a decision met with a lot of outcry from the state and supporters of Joseph Rosenbaum, Anthony Huber and Gaige Grosskreutz.
Then when Binger requested that those shot by Rittenhouse not be called "looters, rioters, arsonists or any other pejorative term" by the defense, Schroeder denied his request.
Binger biography
He's a graduate of Michigan Law School
He worked as a prosecutor in Milwaukee County for six years, starting in 1999
He was in private practice in Racine County before coming to Kenosha County
Contact Christopher Kuhagen at (262) 446-6634 or christopher.kuhagen@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ckuhagen and our newsroom Instagram accounts at MyCommunityNow and Lake Country Now.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Thomas Binger is lead prosecutor in Kyle Rittenhouse trial in Kenosha
