Rittenhouse Hospitalized After Brown Recluse Bite

Kyle Rittenhouse, the 23-year-old man acquitted in the 2021 Kenosha shootings, was hospitalized this week after a bite from a brown recluse spider.

Rittenhouse shared photos on X, formerly Twitter, showing himself connected to IVs in a hospital bed and red marks on his thigh. In posts dated May 6, 2026, he wrote, "The communists couldn't take me out and I'll be damned if I let a brown recluse take me out." He added that the spider "thought it was a good idea to come after me while I was armed" and "did not survive," alongside an image of himself preparing to fire a rifle. Rittenhouse also expressed disappointment that he had not gained superpowers like Spider-Man from the bite.

Brown recluse spiders, found in parts of the South, Midwest, and West, produce venom that can cause swelling, pain, fever, and in severe cases, tissue necrosis around the bite site. Symptoms often worsen over hours or days, potentially leading to blisters and open wounds that heal over weeks, according to medical sources. Deaths are rare, and treatment typically involves wound care, pain management, elevation, and ice. Rittenhouse provided few details on his treatment but indicated he expected to recover...