iPhone video downsized with evidence in Rittenhouse case

Rittenhouse, 17, shot and killed two people in the summer of 2020 during a demonstration in Kenosha, Wisconsin. At that time, protests were organized against the shooting of black man Jacob Blake. Trump supporter Rittenhouse came armed to the rally, saying he would protect retail real estate. In the end he shot three people, two of whom died.

The case is now before the judge, but technical problems are causing delays. Rittenhouse’s lawyers have called for the case to be dismissed, because video evidence from the plaintiffs is unclear. The reason appears to be sending the video from the iPhone to the Android phone, according to CNN, among other things.

AirDrop in Android

It concerns photos taken with a drone, which the manufacturer handed over to the police months ago. These photos were sent in full quality via AirDrop between the manufacturer’s iPhone and the investigator’s iPhone. The video was then shared with the prosecutor, who wants to use the footage as evidence. That’s why the video was also shared with Rittenhouse’s defense, and this is where the error occurred.

The defense attorney has an Android phone, so he can’t receive files via AirDrop from his iPhone. This is the reason why video images are shared via Mail app on iPhone, but the video size has been reduced. The original version is 11.2MB, while the video that got the defense is only 3.6MB. “This is why the video uploaded by the defense is not as clear as the state video,” Rittenhouse’s lawyers wrote in their request for revocation.

USB stick offered a solution

Only when the photos were shown in court did the defense notice the difference in quality. In the end, a USB stick was used to transmit the video of evidence from the prosecution to the defense. However, by that time, the lawsuit had already begun, so the defense was still requesting an annulment.

The judge says the evidence should be reviewed after a technical expert explains the situation to the court, NBC 5 News reports.