Man who bought rifle for Kyle Rittenhouse takes plea deal

Dominick Black, who bought the rifle used by Kyle Rittenhouse in the Kenosha shootings, avoided prison through a deal with prosecutors by pleading no contest to contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Wisconsin Judge Bruce Schroeder, who oversaw the Rittenhouse trial, accepted the 19-year-old's plea Monday during a six-minute hearing, the Associated Press reports.

As part of a deal with Black, Rittenhouse prosecutor Thomas Binger dropped two felony charges of intent to deliver a dangerous weapon to a child. Black faced up to nine months in jail over the original weapons charge, which Binger reduced to a county ordinance violation with a $2,000 fine.

In May 2020, the then-18-year-old Black bought the rifle for Rittenhouse, who was 17. Three months later, Rittenhouse used the rifle to shoot three people, killing two of them, during riots in Kenosha, Wisc. Black testified against Rittenhouse, who was acquitted in November.

According to the AP, Binger told Schroeder, "To go forward with these felony charges against Mr. Black, given the court's legal ruling as well as Mr. Black's cooperation and the jury's decision in the Rittenhouse case, does not seem appropriate."

Tony Cotton, Black's attorney, told AP "justice was done."

"The District Attorney's Office did the right thing by agreeing to dismiss the felony charges against our client, especially considering that a jury found Rittenhouse not guilty," Cotton said.