Kanishka Singh

(Reuters) – Facebook has lifted restrictions that prevent users from praising and searching for Kyle Rittenhouse’s name. A jury acquitted Rittenhouse of murder following the shooting deaths of two men last year during racial justice demonstrations.

“After Kenosha verdict we reversed the limitations we put in place to limit search results for key terms, including Kyle Rittenhouse,” stated a spokesperson of Meta Platforms Inc on Wednesday in an emailed message.

The spokesperson stated that while we would still remove any content celebrating the deaths of Kenosha’s victims, it was not possible to remove material that praises Rittenhouse.

In a verdict that reignited intense debate regarding gun rights and self-defense in the United States, Rittenhouse was acquitted by a jury of his murder in the shooting deaths of Rittenhouse and Robertson.

Jurors found Rittenhouse (18) not guilty of all charges. Rittenhouse was convicted of two counts for homicide and one count for attempted homicide to wound a third person. Rittenhouse also pled not guilty of two counts each of recklessly endangering safety during protests that were marred by arson and rioting on August 25, 2020 in Kenosha (Wisconsin).

Rittenhouse killed Joseph Rosenbaum (36), and Anthony Huber (26). He also fired a shot that saw Gaige Grosskreutz’s arm ripped off by the bullet. Rittenhouse claimed self defense.

Facebook declared the Rittenhouse killings as a mass shooting last year and promised to take down praise Rittenhouse content. They also stated that such content was against their policies, and they would remove it from their site.

Rittenhouse, according to the prosecution, was described as a dangerous vigilante who provoked violent encounters and didn’t show any regret for shooting the AR-15-style rifle at the men. Defense argued Rittenhouse had repeatedly been attacked and had fired on the men out of fear for his safety.