Man arrested at Trump rally in Ohio due for initial hearing
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A U.S. Secret Service agent rushes onto stage to form a protective ring around Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump after someone tried to rush the stage as he spoke at a campaign rally at Wright Brothers Aero Hangar in Vandalia, Ohio.
DAYTON, Ohio >> A man charged after rushing the stage at a Donald Trump rally in Ohio is due in federal court.
Authorities say 22-year-old Thomas DiMassimo, of Fairborn, jumped a barricade and charged at Trump at an airport hangar in Vandalia. He was arrested by police and subsequently charged with illegally entering a restricted area.
An initial hearing was scheduled Friday before a magistrate. The misdemeanor count carries a potential one-year prison sentence.
DiMassimo’s attorney has said the Wright State University student meant only to express his political views. Video from the rally shows DiMassimo touched the stage where Trump was speaking as Secret Service agents and other security converged.
The Vandalia rally March 12 was Trump’s first after well-organized students succeeded in keeping him from taking the stage in Chicago.
