A federal Judge in Louisville has ruled that then-candidate Donald Trump incited violence against three protesters when he shouted to the crowd last year at a campaign rally to "get 'em out of here." U.S. District Judge David J. Hale of the Western District of Kentucky, wrote in an opinion and order, that Trump's decision to direct the crowd was "particularly reckless," and the case will proceed. Hale added that there were known members of hate groups were in attendance, and Trump rallies as a whole, have had a history of violent outbreaks.
The Courier-Journal reports:
"Citing case law from tumultuous 1960s race riots and student protests, Hale rejected motions to dismiss the pending complaint against Trump and three supporters in the crowd that was filed by three protesters after a March 1, 2016, campaign rally in Louisville. Only a portion of the defendants' motion was granted, but the decision means that the bulk of the claims will proceed. Hale referred the case to Magistrate Judge H. Brent Brennenstuhl."
Henry Brousseau, Kashiya Nwanguma and Molly Shah are the three protesters alleging that they were assaulted by audience members who were provoked by Trump's rhetoric. The trio seeks monetary damages, which are not specified. The lawsuit notes that one of the three defendants — Matthew Heimbach — is a leader of a white supremacist group known as the Traditional Youth Network, based in Paoli, Indiana.
Video footage captured the men pushed and shoved Nwanguma in order to force her out of the arena — upon Trump's request.
Trump's lawyer R. Kent Westberry, argued that the three man acted on their own will and were not working for or otherwise influenced to act on Trump's behalf.
The Courier-Journal reported:
"Reached Saturday, Westberry declined to comment. Jeff Klusmeier, chairman of Young Professionals for Trump who organized the rally, said he is surprised that the protesters have gotten this far with litigation that he expects eventually will get dismissed. "If anything, they should have been arrested," he said of the protesters. "They took part in promoting violence. They got the reaction they were looking for."
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