[dahfizz]

Character witnesses are extremely common[1].

The issue isn't whether the jury would have liked the victim. The question was "did the victim attack Kyle?". The fact that the victim had a known violent past is very relevant to that question.

[1] https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/character_witness

[woodruffw]

The requirement for a victim’s character witness is that it be a “pertinent” trait. It’s not clear to me that a sexual crime (even an extremely serious one) provides is pertinent to an individual’s homicidal capacity, even if Rittenhouse was somehow aware of the victim’s prior conviction. Which brings us back to the parent’s original point.

[jdkee]

A convicted child molester chasing and attacking a child on a public street at night does seem relevant.