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Taxpayers May Be Forced To Cover Legal Fees For NY AG Letitia James Amid Fraud Probe

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Alec Perkins from Hoboken, USA, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

New York taxpayers could soon find themselves footing the legal bill for Attorney General Letitia James as she prepares to defend herself against a federal investigation into alleged mortgage and real estate fraud. Buried in New York’s newly approved operations budget is language that opens a $10 million fund to reimburse state officials — including James — for “reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses” tied to investigations launched by the federal government after January 1, 2025.

Though the budget provision does not mention James by name, sources familiar with the matter confirmed to The New York Post that the fund was included with her case in mind. The fund could also apply to other state officials targeted by a Trump administration-led Department of Justice as it reopens investigations into political and institutional corruption.

The controversy stems from a criminal referral issued last month by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), whose director, William Pulte, accused James of falsifying mortgage documents and misrepresenting her residency status. According to the referral sent to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, James claimed a Virginia home — allegedly purchased on behalf of her niece — as her primary residence, a move that could constitute mortgage fraud.

James, who gained national prominence for her high-profile civil fraud case against Donald Trump, has come under scrutiny for what critics now call a double standard. Once the face of the “no one is above the law” mantra, she now finds herself leaning on state funds and a private legal defense to fight the allegations. A spokesperson for her office called the probe “political retribution” and vowed to fight what they characterized as a “revenge tour” orchestrated by Trump.

But Republicans are not buying the victim narrative.

“This is what corruption looks like in plain sight: political insiders rigging the system to protect their own, while hardworking families get shortchanged,” said New York GOP Chair Ed Cox. “Tish James used her office to wage partisan lawfare against her political opponents, and now New Yorkers are footing the bill for the consequences.”

Critics also slammed what they describe as a legal “bailout” hidden in plain sight. The language in the budget states that any state employee facing a federal investigation related to their duties may seek reimbursement — a clause that could be used broadly and, according to opponents, easily abused.

The legal support fund is likely to inflame already tense debates over partisanship, misuse of public resources, and institutional trust. With New York’s top law enforcement officer now potentially under federal investigation, questions will continue to mount over the ethical boundaries between public office and political warfare — and who ends up paying the price.

Agent Who Took Bullet For Reagan Backs Secret Service After WHCA Dinner Chaos

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By Series: Reagan White House Photographs, 1/20/1981 - 1/20/1989Collection: White House Photographic Collection, 1/20/1981 - 1/20/1989 - https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75856639, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=96625804

A Secret Service agent who literally took a bullet for President Ronald Reagan is now defending the agency after the shocking armed breach at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Tim McCarthy — the agent wounded during the 1981 assassination attempt on Reagan — says critics need to cool it.

“I think we need to ratchet down the rhetoric just a little bit and give the Secret Service at the moment quite a bit of credit for doing a hell of a good job,” McCarthy said on NewsNation Live.

That’s no small endorsement.

McCarthy was among the agents protecting Reagan outside the Washington Hilton in March 1981 when would-be assassin John Hinckley Jr. opened fire. Reagan was hit by a bullet that ricocheted off his limousine, piercing his lung and causing massive internal bleeding. McCarthy, along with Press Secretary James Brady and others, was also struck — Brady left permanently disabled.

Now, more than four decades later, McCarthy is weighing in on another high-stakes moment at the very same hotel.

On Saturday night, an armed suspect stormed the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, where President Donald Trump was in attendance — sparking panic and fierce backlash online over security failures.

But McCarthy says the system worked.

“This guy really didn’t get too far,” he said. “He ran through the metal detectors… exchanged gunfire… wasn’t even on the same floor… and was tackled by an agent, never got to the stairs.”

Despite viral outrage — and even the suspect himself claiming there was “no damn security” — McCarthy emphasized the layered defense that stopped the threat cold.

“Now, security is in layers,” he explained, detailing how multiple levels of resistance stood between the gunman and the president, including counter-assault teams and SWAT units.

Bottom line: the shooter never got close.

“Security was tested, security responded, and at this point it did pretty well,” McCarthy said.

The Trump White House appears to agree.

Officials praised the Secret Service for quickly evacuating the president, vice president, and cabinet, while Chief of Staff Susie Wiles is set to review protocols going forward.

Still, critics have questioned whether more could have been done — including calls to lock down the entire hotel.

McCarthy dismissed that idea outright.

“Well, try finding a hotel with a ballroom if you’re going to shut the hotel down,” he said. “You’re not going to find one. No one’s going to want to do that.”

He also noted that security included multiple layers — possibly more than the standard three — and that the threat never reached the ballroom floor.

For McCarthy, who lived through one of the darkest days in presidential security history, the verdict is clear:

“So far, based on what I know, I’m pretty satisfied with what the Secret Service did on this occasion.”

The Washington Hilton hotel said is a statement Monday it was following “stringent” Secret Service protocols during Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.

“The ​hotel was operating under stringent security ​protocols for the property as directed by the ‌U.S. ⁠Secret Service, which led security,” a hotel spokesperson said in a statement, according to Reuters

The spokesperson reportedly added that the Secret Service coordinated with numerous security teams, including the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) in addition to hotel security. 

Trump Assassination Suspect Enters ‘Not Guilty’ Plea

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On Monday, the Florida man accused of attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty in court.

Ryan Routh, 58, appeared in federal court Monday to enter five not guilty pleas to counts including attempted assassination of a major political candidate and assault of a federal officer, after he allegedly poked a rifle through the perimeter of Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course, prompting a Secret Service agent to fire.  

Routh also pleaded not guilty to charges he possessed a firearm with an obliterated serial number despite being a convicted felon, in furtherance of a crime of violence. 

Prosecutors say Routh planned to kill Trump as he golfed on Sept. 15, staking out the perimeter of the course near its sixth hole for roughly 12 hours until he was noticed and fled. They revealed last week that Routh allegedly wrote a letter months before the assassination attempt detailing his plans.  

“Dear world, this was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you,” Routh wrote, according to the letter filed by prosecutors. “I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster.” 

Routh has been in custody since the incident and faces up to life in prison.  

This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

GOP Senator Swatted Hours After He’s Branded ‘RINO’ By Trump

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President Donald Trump is threatening to primary Indiana Republicans for declining to gerrymander the state and add GOP seats to Congress.

The president has repeatedly urged GOP-led states like Indiana to redistrict and give Republicans an advantage in the 2026 midterms.

Trump took to Truth Social Sunday to put “RINO Senators” on notice for “depriving” Republicans of a House majority.

“Very disappointed in Indiana State Senate Republicans, led by RINO Senators Rod Bray and Greg Goode, for not wanting to redistrict their State, allowing the United States Congress to perhaps gain two more Republican seats,” Trump wrote.

“The Democrats have done redistricting for years, often illegally, and all other appropriate Republican States have done it. Because of these two politically correct type ‘gentlemen,’ and a few others, they could be depriving Republicans of a Majority in the House, A VERY BIG DEAL!”

Trump took a shot at California’s Prop 50 redistricting measure that passed overwhelmingly and allows the state to redraw congressional districts in favor of Democrats. Prop 50 was proposed after Texas approved redistricting in favor of Republicans.

“California is trying to pick up five seats, and no one is complaining about that. It’s weak ‘Republicans’ that cause our Country such problems — It’s why we have crazy Policies and Ideas that are so bad for America,” Trump wrote, continuing:

Also, a friend of mine, Governor Mike Braun, perhaps, is not working the way he should to get the necessary Votes. Considering that Mike wouldn’t be Governor without me (Not even close!), is disappointing! Any Republican that votes against this important redistricting, potentially having an impact on America itself, should be PRIMARIED. Indiana is a State with strong, smart, and patriotic people. They want us to see our Country WIN, and want to, “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Senators Bray, Goode, and the others to be released to the public later this afternoon, should DO THEIR JOB, AND DO IT NOW! If not, let’s get them out of office, ASAP.

The Indiana state lawmaker was the target of a “swatting” incident just hours later, according to local authorities.

Sheriff Derek Fell said deputies were dispatched around 5 p.m. on Sunday after Terre Haute police received an email “advising harm had been done to persons inside a home, located in southeastern Vigo County.” Officers struggled to make contact at first, Fell said, but eventually confirmed the residents, including the senator, were safe.

Goode and his family “were secure, safe, and unharmed,” Fell said, adding that an investigation showed the threat was a hoax, “also known as ‘swatting.’”

In a brief statement, the senator said he and his family were “victims,” offering thanks to the sheriff and Terre Haute Police Chief Kevin Barrett for their “professionalism.”

The incident lands amid a tense and unusually public fight over redistricting in Indiana. GOP leaders froze the process on Friday when Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray refused to reconvene lawmakers to draw new maps favoring Republicans.

Earlier Sunday, Trump threatened to publish a list of GOP holdouts “later this afternoon,” though the promised names did not emerge.

Authorities Apprehend Suspect In Trump Campaign Office Burglary

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Arrest image via Pixabay

A suspect accused of breaking into a Donald Trump campaign office outside of Washington, D.C. has been arrested, according to reports.

Toby Shane Kessler, 39, was detained on Saturday by the University of California, San Francisco Police Department for squatting in a campus dorm, the Loudoun County sheriff’s office said in a release on Thursday. 

Kessler was allegedly behind the break-in at a Trump campaign office in Ashburn, Va., in August. He broke in through the back door of the office and spent a “brief” period of time there before exiting, according to the Loudoun County sheriff’s office. 

The office is also used as the Virginia 10th District Republican Committee’s headquarters.

The sheriff’s office said that Kessler faces burglary charges, though law enforcement did not say if he took anything from the office. 

“It is rare to have the office of any political campaign or party broken into,” Sheriff Mike Chapman said at the time the incident took place. “We are determined to identify the suspect, investigate why it happened, and determine what may have been taken as well as what may have been left behind.”

In mid-August, the Loudoun County sheriff’s office said Kessler has a “history of criminal behavior and appears to have been in the Washington metropolitan area at least since 2018.” 

Trump has not commented on the arrest.

House GOP Pressures Attorney General To Prosecute Officials Helping Subvert Deportations

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Multiple House Republicans are demanding the Justice Department prosecute elected officials and left-wing activist groups allegedly attempting to undermine the administration’s deportation efforts.

GOP Reps. Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma, Andy Harris of Maryland, Eric Burlison of Missouri and Pete Sessions of Texas sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi Tuesday, exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation. 

“We write today to applaud your prosecution of Governor Kathy Hochul and New York Attorney General Letitia James and to respectfully request that you continue prosecuting individuals, organizations and elected officials who aid and abet illegal aliens in evading Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers,” the Republican lawmakers wrote. “Assisting aliens in avoiding deportation is illegal; therefore, we urge you to continue upholding the integrity of the American system.”

“Far-left politicians and nongovernmental organizations [NGOs] are flouting the law under the assumption that it will not be enforced. We ask that you demonstrate that such violations will not be tolerated.”

Read:

The letter alleges that left-wing organizations such as Code Pink, Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network and the Immigration Defense Project are actively providing resources to illegal migrants to evade detection by ICE.

The GOP congressmen also urged Bondi to prosecute elected officials helping illegal migrants evade detection by ICE.

Democrat New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy appeared to suggest that he was harboring an illegal migrant on his property on Feb. 3, leading border czar Tom Homan vowing to prosecute the elected official for appearing to violate federal law.

“And good luck to the feds coming in to try to get her,” the Democrat then added, speaking at an open discussion at Montclair State University.

Murphy walked back the shocking claim days later.

Homan warned New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that he is working with the DOJ to determine whether the left-wing firebrand violated federal law by hosting a virtual webinar advising illegal migrants on how to handle encounters with ICE on Jan. 11.

“Let’s hope she’s not educating the next person who gets out and murders a young college student in Georgia,” Homan said on Fox News on Feb. 16. “These are bad people we’re looking for. So she can call it education all she wants, but we all know it’s about evading law enforcement. These people have been ordered removed. The people we’re looking for now have final orders. They’re criminals. They’re in the country illegally.”

Bondi filed a lawsuit against Hochul and James on Feb. 12, citing a New York state law allowing immigrants to obtain a driver’s license regardless of legal status. The Trump administration hit Chicago and the state of Illinois with lawsuits on Feb. 6 over the city and state’s sanctuary laws, which restrict cooperation between local officials and ICE.

“This is a new DOJ,” Bondi said during a press conference announcing the Justice Department’s lawsuit against the state of New York. “We are taking steps to protect Americans, American citizens and angel moms.”

“New York has chosen to prioritize illegal aliens over American citizens. It stops today,” Bondi added. “We sued Illinois. New York did not listen. Now you’re next.”

Trump Slams Mamdani’s Netanyahu Arrest Threat: ‘Will Not Happen’

By Bingjiefu He - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,

President Donald Trump drew a bright red line Monday after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani threatened to have Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrested on American soil.

“Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America,” Trump declared in a Truth Social post.

The president defended Netanyahu as a wartime leader confronting the Islamic Republic of Iran, which Trump accused of killing 52,000 protesters and spending decades targeting American troops.

“The only ones that should be arrested are the people that led Iran into this unprecedented SPIRAL OF DEATH AND DESTRUCTION,” Trump added, arguing that previous presidents should have confronted the regime years ago.

Trump’s declaration came after Mamdani revived one of his most controversial campaign promises during an interview with The New York Times’ Lulu Garcia-Navarro.

“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mamdani said. “He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court.”

The democratic socialist mayor said his administration is now examining whether he could use the New York Police Department to detain Netanyahu when the Israeli leader is expected to attend the United Nations General Assembly in September.

“That’s an active conversation with our legal department in seeing what the prospects are we have here in our municipality,” Mamdani said.

He insisted he would follow existing city law and would not attempt to write new rules specifically targeting Netanyahu.

But Mamdani’s arrest talk faces a mountain of legal obstacles.

The United States is not a party to the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court and does not recognize the court’s authority over Americans or Israelis. Foreign affairs are also controlled by the federal government, while diplomatic protections and head-of-state immunity could shield Netanyahu during a U.N. visit.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz dismissed Mamdani’s proposal as “pure political theater.”

“The U.S. is not party to the Rome Statute that underlies the ICC,” Waltz wrote on X, adding that the U.N. Headquarters Agreement grants protections to visiting foreign leaders and that “federal authority trumps any local mayor’s wishes.”

Legal experts have expressed similar doubts. Syracuse University law professor Cora True-Frost said foreign affairs are the “exclusive power of the federal government” and that protections afforded to visiting diplomats would further restrict Mamdani’s ability to carry out his threat. NBC New York reported that several former prosecutors believe an attempt to enforce the ICC warrant could expose participating local officials to federal charges.

The ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024, alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity during Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza. The court said judges found reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and Gallant bore responsibility for alleged crimes including using starvation as a method of warfare.

Israel has categorically rejected the allegations, maintaining that its military takes extensive precautions to protect civilians while battling a terrorist organization that embeds itself among the Palestinian population.

Netanyahu’s office fired back Sunday by branding the ICC a “kangaroo court that has no jurisdiction over Americans or Israelis.”

“Under Prime Minister Netanyahu’s leadership, Israel has taken unprecedented wartime measures to minimize harm to civilians while confronting Hamas, a genocidal terrorist organization that uses Palestinians as human shields and deliberately targets innocent Israeli civilians,” his office said.

It then turned its fire directly on City Hall.

“Mr. Mamdani should focus on fixing the damage his policies have caused New York,” Netanyahu’s office concluded.

Netanyahu has also accused the mayor of siding with “terror actors,” while Mamdani has repeatedly characterized Israel’s response to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas massacre as genocide.

The Trump administration, meanwhile, has backed its rejection of the ICC with more than words. It has imposed sanctions on court personnel and affiliated organizations involved in efforts to prosecute Israelis, declaring that neither the United States nor Israel is subject to the tribunal’s authority. The State Department has described the court’s actions as a threat to American sovereignty.

Mamdani may be determined to turn Netanyahu’s expected September visit into an international showdown.

Trump’s message was that the mayor will not get the chance.

Tucker Carlson Claims Trump Shut Down Butler Probe After Bongino ‘Confession’

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Tucker Carlson via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Former Fox News star Tucker Carlson is pushing a fresh conspiracy theory about the attempted assassination of President Trump — claiming the president himself ordered federal investigators to back off the probe into the July 2024 shooting in Butler, Pa.

Carlson made the explosive allegation during an appearance on Thursday on entrepreneur Mario Nawfal’s show, where he recounted what he described as a series of conversations with former FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino and FBI Director Kash Patel regarding lingering questions surrounding the attack.

The claim was quickly shot down by Bongino, who publicly denied Carlson’s account on Friday and blasted the former cable news host as a “nepo baby.”

“I know that, about Butler, I know that Trump shut down the investigation into Butler. That is a fact,” Carlson told Nawfal. “Dan Bongino told me that when he worked at the FBI.”

Carlson alleged Bongino became visibly rattled after Carlson confronted him about social media posts purportedly written by gunman Thomas Crooks that Carlson claims the FBI falsely said did not exist.

“Dan Bongino himself was terrified when I spoke to him in December,” Carlson said.

The conservative commentator claimed he had “accidentally came into possession” of social media posts allegedly authored by Crooks in the months and years before the shooting. Carlson said he contacted both Patel and Bongino seeking answers about why the FBI had allegedly concealed their existence.

“And Dan Bongino became hysterical with me on the phone,” Carlson claimed. “I’ve known Dan a long time for many years and always gotten along with him.”

“He was clearly terrified. I didn’t get it at first, but he was hysterical,” Carlson continued. “And ultimately, after a long series of text exchanges, which I still have, and phone conversations, he said, ‘Look, take it up with Trump. He’s the one who shut down the investigation.’”

Carlson said the alleged exchange occurred during the second week of December and left him questioning why Trump would halt an investigation into an attempt on his own life.

“That was the moment and I realized, ‘Oh wow, there’s no good explanation for shutting down an investigation into your own attempted murder,’” Carlson said.

Watch:

Crooks, 20, opened fire during a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, grazing Trump’s ear, killing rally attendee Corey Comperatore and seriously wounding two others before Secret Service snipers fatally shot him.

Authorities have said Crooks acted alone and have found no evidence linking him to a broader plot. However, the absence of a clear manifesto or publicly known motive has fueled persistent conspiracy theories online.

Carlson, once one of Trump’s most influential media allies, has increasingly broken with the president in recent months. He has repeatedly criticized Trump over the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and U.S. involvement in the conflict between Israel and Iran.

Earlier this year, Carlson suggested Trump’s worldview changed after the Butler shooting.

“He spent his campaign in the 2024 race arguing against regime change war, attacking people in favor of it — and then he launched it,” Carlson said on his own show. “And not just launched it, but became this kind of enthusiastic tool of the government of Israel.”

Bongino forcefully rejected Carlson’s latest allegations Friday morning in a post on X, denying he ever told Carlson that Trump shut down the Butler investigation.

The former FBI official also took a personal swipe at Carlson, dismissing the claims and mocking the commentator as a “nepo baby.”

Report: Trump Expected To Fire U.S. Attorney

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

President Donald Trump is expected to fire the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia after his office was unable to find incriminating evidence of mortgage fraud against New York Attorney General Letitia James, according to sources. 

Federal prosecutors in Virginia had uncovered no clear evidence to prove that James had knowingly committed mortgage fraud when she purchased a home in the state in 2023, ABC News first reported earlier this week, but Trump officials pushed U.S. Attorney Erik Siebert to nevertheless bring criminal charges against her, according to sources.

Alec Perkins from Hoboken, USA, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The president has reportedly been leaning on federal prosecutors to bring charges against James for alleged mortgage fraud. She has been accused of falsely claiming her house in Virginia as her primary residence despite being legally required to live in New York as an elected official there.

ABC News reported on Wednesday that Siebert, who is the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, was having difficulty finding enough evidence to sustain a conviction against James. On Thursday, the outlet said Trump is expected to fire the prosecutor.

“Administration officials have told Siebert of Trump’s intention to fire him, sources familiar with the matter said,” ABC News stated. “Siebert’s last day on the job is expected to be Friday.”

Trump nominated Siebert for the job in May.

“The decision to fire Siebert could throw into crisis one of the most prominent U.S. attorney’s offices, which handles a bulk of the country’s espionage and terrorism cases, and heighten concerns about Trump’s alleged use of the DOJ to target his political adversaries,” ABC News stated.

In May, the FBI opened an investigation into the notorious prosecutor. James has denied wrongdoing and called the investigation politically motivated, pointing to her office’s civil fraud case against Trump. That case ultimately resulted in a $354 million judgment against the president, which also bars his

During her 2018 campaign for attorney general, James publicly stated she intended to pursue legal action against Trump and investigate his business dealings in New York.

While campaigning, James vowed to shine a “bright light into every corner” of Trump’s “real estate dealings.” Her critics — including Trump himself — would later argue that her civil lawsuit against him was a political witch hunt.

In announcing the probe, US Attorney John A. Sarcone III took a swipe at James’s 2018 campaign rhetoric about investigating President Donald Trump.

The US attorney said James “unethically ran around the state campaigning on getting Donald Trump,” and essentially accused her of finding a criminal target without an alleged crime.

He added:

We stand prepared to act in the capacity that we need to when and if we are informed there’s a charge to be made. Unlike Letitia James, who unethically ran around the state campaigning on getting Donald Trump… my office conducts itself in a manner that is proper and professional.

Woman Charged After Allegedly Attacking 72-year-old Trump Supporter

Arrest image via Pixabay

Another disturbing example of political intolerance turned violent this week in Florida, where a 72-year-old man wearing a Make America Great Again (MAGA) hat was allegedly attacked by a woman enraged over his support for President Donald J. Trump.

According to authorities, Laura Garrett, 33, approached the elderly man at Northeast Park and Paw Place in Largo, Florida, and began interrogating him about his political views and why he supports President Trump. The man has not been publicly identified, but what followed was anything but a civil conversation.

Police say Garrett became physically aggressive, ultimately pouring the contents of a can over the man’s head and then striking him on the back of his head and shoulders with it. While Garrett later denied striking him, officers noted her conflicting statements and eyewitness evidence in the official arrest affidavit obtained by FOX 13 Tampa Bay.

After the assault, Garrett jumped a fence and fled the scene, leaving behind a shaken elderly victim whose only “offense” was expressing his support for a former U.S. president.

Police located Garrett shortly afterward, but her combative behavior didn’t stop there.

When officers attempted to arrest her, Garrett resisted and escalated the situation. According to the report, she intentionally dropped to the ground to avoid being handcuffed and later wrapped both legs around an officer, causing him to fall and suffer a bruised knee. That altercation resulted in a second battery charge—this time against a law enforcement officer.

Even after being restrained, Garrett continued to kick and struggle with police, making her arrest anything but routine.

She now faces multiple charges, including:

  • Battery on a person over 65 (a more serious offense under Florida law)
  • Battery on a law enforcement officer
  • Resisting arrest without violence