A New Hampshire man pleaded not guilty to assault charges on Friday after being arrested for slapping a 15-year-old Trump supporter outside of a polling station for the state’s primary earlier this week.
Windham Police Department said in a statement Thursday that 34-year-old Patrick Bradley walked by a Trump “campaign tent occupied by several campaign supporters/workers” after exiting the polls outside of Windham High School. He then allegedly assaulted the boy and two adults who attempted to stop the attack.
“Bradley was also accused of throwing Trump campaign signs and attempting to knock over the aforementioned tent,” the statement reads.
The boy’s mother, Cathy Campbell, gave an interview to Fox News describing the incident, and said that her son, who was wearing a MAGA hat and was volunteering at the polling sight, was attacked after he told Bradley to “have a nice night.”
“He said it to everyone. But this man was triggered,” Campbell explained. “He said ‘f— you’ to him and wound up his hand as fast as he could and slapped him across the face.”
Campbell added that the incident left her son “her son is “pretty traumatized.”
“He was so excited and not realizing that something like this could happen,” she said. “ . . . This guy lives in our town. It’s pretty unnerving.”
The attack is the second confirmed case of anti-Trump violence this week, after a Florida man was charged by Jacksonville police for driving his van into a voter registration tent staffed by local Republicans.
Gregory Timm told police that he committed the attack out of hatred for the president. “Someone had to take a stand,” he said.