Kenosha County Sheriff Says ‘People Walking Around With Guns’ Aren’t Helping Police: ‘They Create Confrontation’

At a press conference on Wednesday, Kenosha County Sheriff David Beth announced the extension of a city-wide curfew, and spoke at length about problems posed by protesters, rioters, looters, and “people walking around with guns” coming in from outside the city, such as the 17-year-old Illinois man now facing murder charges after allegedly shooting and killing two people Tuesday night.

The press conference began with Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian, who said the city is “not planning on letting this violence continue” and plans to “work together” with residents “to resolve the racial issues in our community.” He also thanked the Governor for sending the National Guard, which he said the city will continue to access as a resource for keeping peace.

When Sheriff Beth spoke, he talked about the measures they’ve taken, and how the city, county, state, and Guard are working together, along with federal agencies, in the wake of the Sunday police shooting of Jacob Blake.

In reference to the shootings that took place in the city on Tuesday night, resulting in two deaths and one victim in the hospital, Beth, who repeatedly condemned social media as a source of antagonism and misinformation, said that some people have urged his office to “deputize” the people who have come to the city armed ostensibly in defense of local businesses against looting.

“Yesterday I had a person call me and say why don’t you deputize citizens who have guns to come out in patrols the city of Kenosha,” said Sheriff Beth. “And I’m like, oh hell no.”

“Yeah, what happened last night, and I think Chief [Daniel Miskinis] is going to talk about it, is probably the perfect reason why I wouldn’t,” he continued. “Once I deputize of somebody they fall under the constitution of the state of Wisconsin. They fall under the county of Kenosha, they fall under my guidance, they have to follow my policies, things have to follow my supervisors. They are a liability to me, and to the county and state of Wisconsin.”

He pointed out explicitly how disastrous that would have been.

“I don’t know this for sure, but the incident that happened last night, two people lost their lives,” he said. Had the alleged shooter, Kyle Rittenhouse, been deputized, then the reality facing them would be that of a “deputy sheriff who killed two people.”

“The liabilities that goes with that would have been immense,” he said. “So, that’s one of the things that was brought up to me and just said no way. There is no way that I would deputize people.”

He also brought up people coming in specifically for protesting, rioting, or looting, from places outside the city. They come “for the show” as he put it.

“One of the things that, that we had problems with last night, is a lot of protesters come for the show,” he said. “I mean there’s good protesters that, and they pray and they kneel and do all that stuff, and they chant and I have no objection to that. I was doing it several weeks ago. And I’m good with that.”

“But there are some, and we’ve gotten several that come here from outside Kenosha,” he continued, pointing they come from out of state or from other cities in Wisconsin. “They’re coming here, they have no desire to protest.”

“And I go back to social media. One of the invitations look like a party invitation, something you would get from your brother to come and see your niece’s graduation or her birthday. ‘Come, wear your black outfits, wear a black mask, bring your backpacks.’ Filled with Molotov cocktails, rocks, whatever else they may have in these backpacks. So, that was the invitation that went out,” he said, before circling back to the apparent vigilantes.

“But I go back to, I think some people are thinking that I should deputize oh, we should have these people out there with guns under my authority. What a scary scary thought that would be in my world,” he said.

“Part of the problem with this group is they create confrontation. People walking around with guns, if I walk around with in uniform with a gun. All of you probably wouldn’t be too intimidated by it because you’re used to officers having guns. But if I put out my wife with an AR-15 or my brother with a shotgun or whatever it would be, walking through the streets, you would guys would wonder what the heck is going on,” he added. “That doesn’t help us.”

Watch the clip above, via CNN.