 "Donald Trump, Trump")
Pritchard said Weiss faked a foot injury and concealed a tube of glue in a metal crutch | (Photo: PTI)
A man arrested last week at a Pennsylvania rally for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump had hoped to hang a banner to protest Trump’s policies, Johnstown’s police chief said Tuesday.
Authorities announced that misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest were filed against Stephen A. Weiss, 36, of Pittsburgh, who was taken into custody at Friday’s Trump rally.
Johnstown Police Chief Richard Pritchard said investigators do not know what the banner said because arena staff apparently discarded it. He said it was made from a bed sheet and that Weiss told a detective that he does not believe in Trump’s policies.
Pritchard said Weiss faked a foot injury and concealed a tube of glue in a metal crutch.
Weiss declined comment when reached by phone Tuesday, saying he was seeking legal advice.
The arrest affidavit by a Johnstown police detective said Weiss ran onto the arena floor, jumped onto the media stage (and) began to yell towards the main stage where President Trump was speaking. Weiss allegedly would not release himself from steel barricade fencing and force had to be used, police said in the charging document.
A man who accompanied Weiss to the rally told police he was unaware of Weiss’ plan, Pritchard said. The second man was not charged, the chief said.
Weiss also was charged with disrupting a public meeting, a misdemeanor. The Secret Service questioned Weiss on Friday and he was released later that night. He has a court hearing scheduled for Oct. 9.
A Trump campaign spokesman offered no immediate comment Tuesday.
The disruption occurred shortly after Trump criticized major media outlets for what he said was unfavorable coverage.
There has been heightened scrutiny of security at Trump rallies since a gunman fired at him, grazing his ear, during an outdoor rally in July in Butler, Pennsylvania. Security at political events has been noticeably tighter since then.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First Published: Sep 04 2024 | 7:40 AM IST
