Five sheriff's deputies in North Carolina have been disciplined for not acting when a black protestor was punched in face by a white supporter at Donald Trump's rally on March 9.
Three of the deputies were demoted and suspended for five days without pay, and the other two were suspended without pay for three days.
The deputies were charged for "unsatisfactory performance and failing to discharge the duties and policies of the office of sheriff," said a statement from Sheriff Earl Butler, Cumberland County, NC, on his Facebook page.
Cell phone videos taken at the scene show a Trump supporter punching a protestor, identified as Rakeem Jones, 26, when he was being led out by the deputies.
The audience was booing, and the protester gave his middle finger to the crowd. As the police was escorting Jones out, with three policemen walking ahead of him up the stairs and two walking behind, a Trump supporter near the stands came up and beat him. The two deputies following Jones appeared to just walk past the aggressor.
The Trump supporter, 78-year-old John Franklin McGraw, later said that Jones deserved the punch, and that, "the next time we see him, we might have to kill him."
McGraw was arrested the next day and charged with assault, and communicating threats, which were caught live on the video recorded just after the punching incidence.
"The actions of the deputies and their failures to act in situations such as that which occurred during the Trump rally at the Crown Coliseum have never been and will not ever be tolerated under the policies of this office," the Sheriff statement said.
All the five deputies have been placed on probation for the next one year.
Sheriff Butler also said that some of the disciplined deputies had a track record of bravery in handling many criminal cases, including handling of Andrew Michaelis, who killed his family and then charged on the deputies. He said that, in view of the deputies' past record, their punishment was moderated.
"I have taken into account the past bravery and exemplary conduct, including the life-saving and other actions of these deputies in assessing the discipline, and in imposing the sanctions," the sheriff wrote. "We regret that any of the circumstances at the Trump rally occurred, and we regret that we have had to investigate all of these matters."
The sheriff said he reviewed the evidence from the rally, and dismissed possible charges against Trump for inciting a riot at the event.
"It is our duty and responsibility to do justice, and to carefully examine not only the actions of others, but our own actions to ensure that the law and our policies are justly and fairly enforced based in principle and without other influences," he said.
