PROPOSED TN LAW TO REIMBURSE DEFENDANTS CHARGED WITH MURDER IN SELF-DEFENSE
Tennessee Rep. Bruce Griffey filed a bill aimed at protecting those cleared in self-defense cases Tuesday, naming it after Kyle Rittenhouse.
Rittenhouse made headlines during his trial last year after he crossed state lines and shot three people, killing two, during a night of protests in Kenosha in 2020 over the shooting of a black man, Jacob Blake, by a white police officer.
Griffey’s bill seeks to reimburse those found to be acting in self-defense in cases of murder. Rittenhouse himself was acquitted of all charges in November.
“As introduced, requires a court to order the state to reimburse a criminal defendant for all reasonable costs incurred in defense if the defendant was charged with a criminal homicide offense and found not guilty due to the justification of self-defense,” the bill reads. If passed, it would require the state to reimburse trial costs and loss of wages to those found not guilty.