P. Coonan
2024-11-06 00:32:14 UTC
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Permalinksupporter of former President Donald Trump was arrested here Saturday at a
rally in support of Vice President Kamala Harris and charged with punching
a 70-year-old woman in the stomach.
A 17-year-old boy wearing a T-shirt featuring an image of Trump raising
his middle finger in front of an American flag background punched the
Harris supporter, knocking her off her feet, according to police and the
woman, Stuart resident Kathleen Tomasko.
The 17-year-old was arrested once police, hired by the event organizers,
arrived on the scene at the north end of the Roosevelt Bridge on U.S. 1.
He was charged with battery on a person 65 years of age or over, according
to Stuart Police Department spokesperson Brian Bossio.
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"Several people pointed out a male who was walking away from the area as
someone who battered or struck a woman. I was able to go get the guy, walk
him over to the car and detain him," Bossio said.
According to witnesses, Bossio said, the 17-year-old was walking away from
a separate altercation with a male Harris supporter when he struck Tomasko
and knocked her to the ground.
Tomasko said she did nothing to provoke the 17-year-old and she did not
hear him say anything to her. In fact, she didn't even see him coming, she
said.
"I'm standing there and people are moving and this kid just turned around
and he punched me. I don't know where he came from," Tomasko said. "He
punched me in the gut and knocked me on the ground, and I fell back and
hit the ground. Thank goodness the two ladies were behind me so I didn't
hit my head."
While Tomasko initially declined to go to the hospital, she said Saturday
afternoon that she may need to because of her hip hitting the ground when
she fell.
The boy who punched her was one of four that Tomasko saw earlier during
the rally.
"There were these four boys that were, you know, Trumpers, and it's a
Harris rally," Tomasko said. "So they were going back and forth and
antagonizing people, and our people were antagonizing them, I guess."
The rally, called by supporters "Rally on the Bridge," was part of the
nationwide Women's March, and was specifically in support of Harris and
Amendment 4, a ballot measure that would put protections for abortion
rights in Florida's state constitution.
Tomasko said she has been attending political events for decades, but has
never experienced anything like this.
"My girlfriend called me from Massachusetts and said 'Kathy, I can't
believe, we've done rallies like this for how many years and nothing like
this ever happens,'" Tomasko said.
There were no other arrests or incidents of violence reported at the
event, Bossio said.
Wicker Perlis is TCPalm's Watchdog Reporter for St. Lucie County. You can
reach him at ***@tcpalm.com.
https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/trump/2024/11/04/florida-teen-
with-trump-shirt-charged-with-punching-harris-supporter/76044135007/