Two important trials now in progress in Georgia and Wisconsin concern the growing resort to vigilantism in America in the face of racial-justice protests. Since protests exploded across the country last year after the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, white vigilantes have felt emboldened to take the law into their own hands and even use deadly force against their opponents. The most high-profile example of this pattern was the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection.

Two other cases warned of the developing trend: The Feb. 23, 2020, killing by three white vigilantes in Brunswick, Georgia, of Black jogger Ahmaud Arbery, and the Aug. 25, 2020, shooting by white teenager Kyle Rittenhouse of three Black Lives Matter protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Two of Rittenhouse's victims died. And despite what the judge in that trial says, all three absolutely were victims.

Last week, just before the start of jury selection in the Rittenhouse trial, Judge Bruce Schroeder ruled that prosecutors may not use the word "victim" in reference to the three men recorded on video being shot by Rittenhouse. He also said defense lawyers may use pejorative terms like "rioters," "looters" and "arsonists" to describe the victims if evidence surfaces showing they committed such acts.

As a 17-year-old, Rittenhouse was not legally permitted to possess a dangerous weapon. In video interviews ahead of the shooting, Rittenhouse brandished an assault-style rifle and declared his intention, albeit unsolicited, to provide armed protection for Kenosha businesses during rioting against the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man. Blake was shot seven times after failing to heed orders to drop a knife. Rittenhouse, after shooting three people, approached police while repeatedly reaching toward his rifle. Instead of halting and disarming him, police waved Rittenhouse past.

In Georgia, three white vigilantes chased down Arbery as he was jogging through their neighborhood. They claim, without evidence, that they suspected him of recent burglaries in the area. After cornering him on a street, one of the vigilantes shot Arbery dead during a struggle caught on video. One of the vigilantes was an ex-police officer. Police did not detain any of the three, and charges weren't filed in the case until months later, when release of the video prompted a public outcry.

What's particularly concerning in these two cases, aside from the skewed police treatment of white assailants, is the distinct possibility that the defendants might get off scot-free. In both cases, the victims struggled with their assailants before being shot. Assertions of self-defense in such vigilante confrontations are exactly how George Zimmerman escaped prison for killing teenager Trayvon Martin in 2012.

Considering the nation's deep political divide and the various ways Republicans have tried to justify the vigilante action of Jan. 6, it's questionable whether jurors can unanimously agree to convict in these two cases. Which means Americans should, once again, brace themselves for a new round of potential public outrage.

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