During day two of jury deliberation in the murder trial of Kyle Rittenhouse on Wednesday, Judge Bruce Schroeder called out the media from the bench and scolded them for their “grossly irresponsible handling of what comes out of this trial.” But while ABC’s World News Tonight and the CBS Evening News completely ignored the Judge, NBC Nightly News decided to edit the video of his comments and suggest he had only scolded the general “public criticism of the attorneys in this case.”
In a segment that was fairly accurate in explaining the defense’s motion for a mistrial with prejudice, unlike CBS (as will be explained later), NBC national correspondent Gabe Gutierrez squandered it by falsely framing Schroeder’s scathing comments as directed at the general public watching the trial:
GUTIERREZ: The judge also taking on public criticism of the attorneys in this case.
SCHROEDER: I am going to think long and hard about live television in trial again next time.
Now, it is true that Schroeder did defend the attorneys on both sides of the case. “These are five very reputable, competent attorneys that I’ve practiced with for years, and I think it's shameful, some of the things that are being done to these people,” he said.
But in his complete comments, that was said in the context of how terribly the media had been behaving, to the point where he was thinking about no longer allowing cameras inside his courtroom:
And some of the things that have been said, too, I guess I will comment on that too. These are five very reputable, competent attorneys that I’ve practiced with for years, and I think it's shameful, some of the things that are being done to these people.
And when I talked about problems with the media, when this trial started, we were there in part -- not fully, but in part -- because of grossly irresponsible handling of what comes out of this trial.
I will tell you this, I'm going to think long and hard about live television in a trial again next time. I don't know. I've always been a firm believer in it because I think people should be able to see what's going on, but when I see what's being done is really quite frightening. Frightening, that's the word.
That sounds nothing like what Gutierrez suggested it was. It’s reminiscent of when NewsBusters caught NBC deceptively editing a 911 call in the police shooting of Ma’Khia Bryant as she tried to stab someone. And what he seemingly tried to do was wash the media's hands of the situation and then show it to their viewers and say they're the problem.
And not only did the CBS Evening News ignore Schroeder’s rebuke of the media, but as noted above, they did a poor job of explaining the defense’s motion for a mistrial with prejudice. According to correspondent Nancy Chen, “The argument, concerning this drone footage, showing Rittenhouse shooting and killing Joseph Rosenbaum. Rittenhouse’s lawyers say they only recently learned there was higher quality video.”
But as Gutierrez more accurately explained, “The defense filing a motion accusing the prosecution of intentional misconduct and withholding evidence. The defense argues prosecutors did not share a high-resolution copy of this drone video until two days before closing arguments.”
So, it wasn’t that the defense just stumbled upon the drone video; it was that the prosecution allegedly gave them a poor quality video on purpose and Judge Schroeder was already under the assumption that the state was operating in bad faith.
NBC’s edit job and mischaracterization of Judge Schroeder’s comments was made possible because of lucrative sponsorships from Liberty Mutual and Prevagen. Their contact information is linked so you can tell them about the biased news they fund.
The transcripts are below, click "expand" to read:
Fox News Channel’s Outnumbered
November 17, 2021
12:08:24 p.m. Eastern(…)
JUDGE BRUCE SCHROEDER: And some of the things that have been said, too, I guess I will comment on that too. These are five very reputable, competent attorneys that I’ve practiced with for years, and I think it's shameful, some of the things that are being done to these people.
And when I talked about problems with the media, when this trial started, we were there in part -- not fully, but in part -- because of grossly irresponsible handling of what comes out of this trial.
I will tell you this, I'm going to think long and hard about live television in a trial again next time. I don't know. I've always been a firm believer in it because I think people should be able to see what's going on, but when I see what's being done is really quite frightening. Frightening, that's the word.
But back to the subject at hand.
(…)
NBC Nightly News
November 17, 2021
7:04:55 p.m. EasternLESTER HOLT: Tense hours as well at that courthouse in Kenosha, Wisconsin where the jury finished a second day of deliberating the fate of Kyle Rittenhouse, as his lawyers made a new demand for a mistrial this time over some video evidence. Gabe Gutierrez is there.
[Cuts to video]
GABE GUTIERREZ: Tonight, the jurors in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial are apparently wrestling with video evidence. Their first question --
JUDGE BRUCE SCHROEDER: Do we view videos in private or in the courtroom? So, my nightmare has come true.
GUTIERREZ: Attorneys sparred over how best to replay videos for the jury. Showing the incident last August when Rittenhouse shot and killed two men and wounded a third during unrest following the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
How crucial are the videos to this case?
DAVID HANCOCK (Rittenhouse Family Spokesperson): They are vital. The prosecution put their whole case on a drone video that seemingly appeared out of nowhere, out of thin air.
GUTIERREZ: The defense filing a motion accusing the prosecution of intentional misconduct and withholding evidence. The defense argues prosecutors did not share a high resolution copy of this drone video until two days before closing arguments. The prosecution says it didn't realize it was a lower quality copy.
DAVID HENDERSON (civil rights attorney): Whenever you request a mistrial, you’re setting up for an appeal.
GUTIERREZ: Judge Bruce Schroeder also addressing questions about why he allowed the defendant to randomly pick the six alternate jurors instead of a court clerk, an uncommon practice, but one the judge says has been his policy for about 20 years.
SCHROEDER: I think people feel better when they have control.
GUTIERREZ: The judge also taking on public criticism of the attorneys in this case.
SCHROEDER: I am going to think long and hard about live television in trial again next time.
[Cuts back to live]
HOLT: Gabe, folks tend to read a lot into what the jury is asking for. What kind of questions, how many questions do they have today?
GUTIERREZ: Lester, they asked three questions today and spent about 45 minutes looking at various videos. Just a short time ago, the judge dismissed the jury for the night and they are expected back here to resume deliberations tomorrow morning. Lester?
HOLT: All right. Gabe, thank you.
