CLEVELAND – A man arrested after trying to jump on the stage at Republican Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Dayton reportedly told police he planned to grab the microphone and yell that Trump is a racist but didn’t intend to hurt anyone.
The Dayton Daily News reports that it has obtained a police report that says 22-year-old Thomas DiMassimo told officers that he’d given his car keys to his girlfriend at Saturday’s rally anticipating that he’d be arrested. DiMassimo, of Fairborn, was charged with misdemeanor inducing panic and disorderly conduct. He was released on bail.
DiMassimo, an acting student with Wright State University’s theater program, couldn’t be reached for comment. It’s unclear if he has an attorney.
Trump was campaigning ahead of Tuesday’s Ohio primary amid an atmosphere of tension after clashes between his supporters, opponents and police prompted the cancellation of an event in Chicago.
Trump continues to blame protesters, the media and even Democratic rival Bernie Sanders for the increasingly caustic campaign environment. In Boca Raton, Florida Sunday night, Trump challenged any protesters that may have been in the audience, saying, “Do we have a protester anywhere? Do we have a disrupter?” Trump’s Sunday events were relatively calm.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who accused Trump of creating a “toxic” mood to the campaign, has reversed his months-long practice of avoiding the topic of his GOP rival Donald Trump. Kasich asked a crowd in Hanoverton Sunday night, “Do we go to the dark side, with negativity, the gnashing of teeth … or do we go to the hopeful and the light side?”