Kyle Rittenhouse, the gun rights advocate who was acquitted of all charges in connection to a 2020 shooting during Black Lives Matter protests, was rushed to the hospital after being bitten by a venomous spider. The 23-year-old shared photos of the spider bite from his hospital bed on Wednesday, telling his followers that he was bitten by a brown recluse spider.
Rittenhouse's Social Media Posts
In a post on social media, Rittenhouse wrote, "The communists couldn't take me out and i'll be damned if I let a brown recluse take me out." He included images of himself attached to an IV and another showing the swollen bite mark. In a follow-up post, he boasted that the spider "did not survive," adding, "The spider, like the commies, also thought it was a good idea to come after me while I was armed."
It was not immediately clear when or where the incident took place. Among his well-wishers were right-wing activist Jack Posobiec and GOP Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky. Rittenhouse also joked, "Disappointed I’m not Spider-Man now…"
Brown Recluse Spiders
Brown recluse spiders, also known as violin or fiddleback spiders, are most commonly found in Southern, Western, and Midwestern parts of the U.S., according to Columbia University’s Irving Medical Center. Fatalities from the spider bites are extremely rare, but if left untreated, patients can experience a painful wound that can lead to scarring. The arachnids, found indoors and outdoors, typically live in hot, dry, and dark areas, and may be hiding in attics and basements among boxes. The spider is not typically aggressive and normally only bites when disturbed or threatened, according to advice from the Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital in Louisiana.
Background on Kyle Rittenhouse
Rittenhouse first made headlines nearly six years ago when, as a 17-year-old, he turned up to a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, armed with an AR-15 style rifle. The protests followed the police shooting of Jacob Blake, who was shot several times in the back by police as he was walking away. Blake, a father, is still alive but was paralyzed from the waist down as a result. Rittenhouse killed Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, and injured paramedic Gaige Grosskreutz, but was acquitted of all charges after claiming self-defense.
