An Illinois Democrat who appeared to describe the parade tragedy in Waukesha, Wisconsin, as a form of payback for the acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse has resigned, Fox News reported Monday.
“Mary Lemanski resigned from her position as social media director of the Democratic Party of DuPage County, Illinois, on Monday morning, Anne Sommerkamp, the organization’s executive director, told Fox News in an email,” the report said.
The outlet also confirmed Lemanski’s name had been removed from the group’s website.
In a social media post on Monday, the DuPage Democrats said, “We are deeply saddened by the tragedy in Waukesha.”
“We are aware of statements made by a former member of our organization and find them to be incredibly insensitive and not in alignment of who we are as an organization,” the post read:
Sommerkamp also confirmed the account that appeared the share the mocking tweets belonged to the Mary Lemanski who stepped down, the Fox report said.
The group also posted her statement of resignation, and Lemanski reportedly shared it on her page but later deleted her account.
An earlier post by Lemanski about the Christmas parade incident said, “It was probably just self-defense,” accompanied by the hashtags “#Wisconsin” and “#KyleRittenhouse.”
According to the Fox report:
“Living in Wisconsin, he probably felt threatened,” read another post attributed to Lemanski, referring to the SUV driver in the Waukesha case. “I’m sure he didn’t want to hurt anyone,” she added. “He came to help people.”
The messages appeared to mock the self-defense argument that Rittenhouse and his defense team made during their recent trial – an argument with which a Wisconsin jury apparently agreed as they found the 18-year-old not guilty of murder in connection with two shooting deaths last year.
“The blood of Kyle Rittenhouse’s victims is on the hands of Wisconsin citizens,” she reportedly wrote, “even the children.”
“I’m sad,” another post read, according to Fox. “I’m sad anytime anyone dies. I just believe in Karma and this came around quick on the citizens of Wisconsin.”
“You reap what you sow, Wisconsin,” yet another post reportedly said.
Social media users reacted to Lemanski’s resignation, one person writing, “You reap what you sow, Mary.”
“You could have offered your condolences, or even just said nothing. While people were still in shock trying to comprehend what had happened, you decided snark was the best path forward. Hopefully you learned a valuable lesson today,” another commented.
A vehicle drove through barricades and into the parade, killing five people and wounding approximately 40 others on Sunday, AFP reported.
“We can confirm that 5 people are deceased and 40 are injured. However, these numbers may change as we collect additional information,” the Waukesha Police Department said in a statement on its Facebook page, adding it had a “person of interest in custody.”
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