Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign manager will not be prosecuted on a charge of misdemeanor battery over allegations he grabbed the arm of a reporter, the campaign confirmed late Wednesday.
Trump campaign social media director Dan Scavino posted on his Facebook page that the charge would not be pressed against Corey Lewandowski.
The decision not to prosecute Lewandowski was first reported by Politico. Palm Beach County State Attorney David Aronberg was scheduled to formally announce his decision on Thursday afternoon.
The incident occurred after a March 8 press conference at the Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Fla., where Lewandowski was accused by Michelle Fields, a reporter for Breitbart at the time, of grabbing her arm as she asked the Republican front-runner a question.
Lewandowski initially denied the incident had taken place.
However, the Jupiter Police Department obtained video from the ballroom that it said paralleled Fields’ version of events, and subsequently charged Lewandowski.
The police report says Lewandowski “grabbed Fields left arm with his right hand, causing her to turn and step back.”
Fields told Fox News’ Megyn Kelly in a “Kelly File” interview Wednesday night that she is planning to pursue a civil case against Lewandowski for defamation.
“Prosecutor’s office told me they would inform me of decision tomorrow. If reports true, guess they decided to leak to reporters first. Ugly,” she wrote.
Mike Edmonson, Aronberg’s executive assistant, denied leaking the information to the media, but added that the initial report that Lewandowski would not be prosecuted was “not incorrect.”
“For those asking, office of prosecutor asked 2 weeks ago if I’d be ok with an apology from Corey. I said ya but haven’t heard back about it,” Fields added.
Trump has staunchly defended his campaign manager after he was charged, as the Republican front-runner suggested the reporter could have been perceived as a threat.
“She’s grabbing my arm. She’s not supposed to. She broke through Secret Service, she is asking questions,” Trump told Fox News last month. “She’s got a pen in her arm, which she’s not supposed to have. It shows that she’s a very aggressive person who is grabbing at me and touching me. Maybe I should file charges against her.”
If reporter Michelle Fields really had fallen, Trump said, “He would have been fired before she even got up.”
The counter-accusations made clear that Trump and his team would continue to fight the charges.
Fields, meanwhile, stood by her claims. And after Trump earlier suggested she changed her story, she pushed back.
“Seriously, just stop lying,” she told Trump on Twitter.
The Trump campaign issued a statement after the charges were announced calling Lewandowski “absolutely innocent.”
“Mr. Lewandowski was issued a notice to appear and was given a court date. He was not arrested. Mr. Lewandowski is absolutely innocent of this charge,” spokeswoman Hope Hicks said in a statement. “He will enter a plea of not guilty and looks forward to his day in court. He is completely confident that he will be exonerated.”(Fox News)
Link: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/04/14/trump-campaign-manager-wont-be-prosecuted-over-battery-claim.html?intcmp=hpbt1
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