A jury in Kenosha, Wisconsin, has found Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty on all counts in connection with an August 2020 shooting that left two men dead amid protests against police brutality.

The jury returned the verdict Friday amid its fourth day of deliberations.

Rittenhouse was found not guilty of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide and two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety. He would have faced life in prison if convicted of the intentional homicide count.

A visibly emotional Rittenhouse collapsed into his chair as the jury's verdict was read.

Rittenhouse was 17 when he traveled from his home in nearby Antioch, Illinois, to Kenosha on Aug. 25 as protests gripped the city following the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man.

Rittenhouse and others armed themselves to protect local businesses from looters and vandals. Several buildings in the area had been vandalized and damaged in the days prior when protests grew violent.

The testimony at trial showed that later in the evening, Rittenhouse separated from the people he had banded together with to protect a used car lot. At that car lot, Rittenhouse encountered protester Joseph Rosenbaum. During that encounter, Rittenhouse shot and killed Rosenbaum.

A video then showed Rittenhouse running while people chased him. That's when a still-unidentified man tried to kick Rittenhouse in the head. Another man named Anthony Huber hit Rittenhouse with a skateboard. Rittenhouse opened fire, killing Huber. Rittenhouse also fired at the first unidentified man but missed.

Moments later, a third man, Gaige Grosskreutz, appeared next to Rittenhouse with a pistol. Rittenhouse fired and shot Grosskreutz in the bicep. Grosskreutz survived the shooting and testified during the trial.

Rittenhouse continued down the road, and at one point, passed a police line. The video showed Rittenhouse raising his arms. Police told him to go home, and they continued on their way to the shooting scenes.

Rittenhouse turned himself into police the next day.

Jurors ultimately decided that Rittenhouse feared for his life and fired in self-defense as protesters surrounded him.

The prosecution had argued the opposite, claiming that Rittenhouse was the aggressor.

After the jury returned the verdict, protesters gathered outside of the Kenosha courthouse. As of 2 p.m. ET, the demonstrations have been peaceful.

Earlier in the week, in a joint statement, the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department and Kenosha Police Department said they saw no reason to pre-emptively close roads or issue a curfew ahead of the verdict.

"Our departments have worked together and made coordinated efforts over the last year to improve response capabilities to large-scale events," the statement said. "We have also strengthened our existing relationships with State and Federal resources."

Huber's family released a statement shortly after the verdict was read, saying that they were "heartbroken" and "angry" that Rittenhouse was found not guilty.

"Today's verdict means there is no accountability for the person who murdered our son," the statement read. "It sends the unacceptable message that armed civilians can show up in any town, incite violence, and then use the danger they have created to justify shooting people in the street. We hope that decent people will join us in forcefully rejecting that message and demanding more of our laws, our officials and our justice system."

When asked his thoughts on the verdict by pool reports, President Joe Biden said he stood by the jury's decision.

"I stand by what the jury has concluded. The jury system works and we have to abide by it," Biden said.

The president released this statement on the matter:

KENOSHA, Wis. — The prosecution rested its case Tuesday in the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, the 18-year-old accused of shooting three protesters — two of them fatally — during demonstrations against police brutality following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha in August 2020.

Over five-and-a-half days, the prosecution attempted to paint Rittenhouse as the aggressor in the incidents that led to the deaths of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber.

On Tuesday, Dr. Doug Kelley of the Milwaukee County medical examiner's office testified that Rosenbaum, the first man killed by Rittenhouse, was shot at close range of just a few feet. He also said Rosenbaum had soot injuries that could indicate he had his hand over the barrel of Rittenhouse's gun.

However, Kelley said it was unclear from video footage whether Rosenbaum was grabbing for Rittenhouse's gun or trying to swat it away.

His testimony came after the jury watched a drone video that showed Rittenhouse wheeling around and shooting Rosenbaum at close range.

On Monday, Gaige Grosskreutz — who survived after being shot by Rittenhouse — took the stand and testified that he thought he was going to die after being shot by Rittenhouse. Under cross-examination, he testified that Rittenhouse had only shot him after he pointed his own weapon at Rittenhouse.

Lawyers for Rittenhouse began presenting their case to the jury Tuesday afternoon. According to CNN, the defense called four people to testify, including two people who were armed on the night of the shooting in Kenosha.

Nicholas Smith claimed that the owners of a car dealership asked them to protect his business. However, the owner of the dealership testified earlier that he never asked for their protection, CNN reports.

Rittenhouse faces five felony charges: first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide, and two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety. He faces life in prison if convicted on one of the homicide counts against him.