Biden backers sue 'Trump Train' members, police over campaign bus incident
Reuters
Published Jun 24, 2021 03:38PM ET
Updated Jun 24, 2021 05:51PM ET
By Joseph Ax
(Reuters) - Several people who were traveling last October on a campaign bus for Democratic President Joe Biden that was surrounded by supporters of Republican former President Donald Trump on a Texas highway filed a pair of federal lawsuits on Thursday over the incident.
One lawsuit, which named more than a half-dozen members of the "Trump Train" as defendants, accused the Trump supporters of violating the Ku Klux Klan Act, an 1871 law named after the violent white supremacist organization and intended to prohibit groups from engaging in voter intimidation.
The second lawsuit claims the public safety director in San Marcos, Chase Stapp, and several unnamed local law enforcement officers failed to provide emergency assistance as Trump backers played a "madcap game of highway 'chicken,'" swerving within inches of the bus and sideswiping one staffer's vehicle.
Video footage taken on Oct. 31, 2020, showed pickup trucks and SUVs bearing Trump flags surrounding the Biden bus along Interstate 35 between San Antonio and Austin. At the time, the Biden campaign said the caravan attempted to force the bus off the road, putting staffers and volunteers at risk.
The incident gained national headlines when Trump tweeted video of the incident a day later with the message, "I LOVE TEXAS!"
The FBI office in San Antonio said last November it had opened an inquiry into the matter. A spokesperson for the agency said on Thursday there was no update on the investigation and declined to comment further.
A San Marcos spokesperson declined to comment on behalf of Stapp, the city and the police department, citing pending litigation.
The plaintiffs include Wendy Davis, a former Texas state senator who unsuccessfully ran for governor in 2014. The lawsuits were brought by Protect Democracy, a nonpartisan group whose mission is to defend against authoritarian threats; the Texas Civil Rights Project; and the law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher.
The lawsuits are seeking unspecified damages.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.