Video of Donald Trump Supporter Sucker-Punching a Guy Got 5 Sheriff's Deputies Suspended

Impact

Remember that video where the black protester got sucker-punched in the face by a white Donald Trump supporter?

There's an update: All five sheriff's deputies involved in the incident have been suspended without pay, and three of them have been demoted in rank.

YouTube
YouTube

The mayhem took place at a Trump rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina on March 9. The white man who threw the punch, 78-year-old John Franklin McGraw, was not detained by officers at the time, but got charged with assault and disorderly conduct the next day, the Washington Post reports.

Meanwhile, multiple uniformed Cumberland County sheriff's deputies were caught on camera tackling and detaining the black protester after he got punched. The victim was later identified as 26-year-old Rakeem Jones.

"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," said Sheriff Earl Butler of the Cumberland County Sheriff's Department in a statement.

Gerry Broome/AP

But the deputies' questionable reaction only underlines what's become a pattern at Trump's rallies. Protesters regularly interrupt the candidate's speeches, only to be forcibly escorted out by security guards. More than 20 physical altercations have been reported at Trump events since Feb. 29, according to the Huffington Post.

Trump also has a documented history of supporting and encouraging violence against protesters at his rallies. "In the good old days this [protesting] doesn't happen because they used to treat them very, very rough," he said at the Fayetteville event. "And when they protested once, you know, they would not do it again so easily."

Three of the five Cumberland County sheriff's deputies were suspended for five days while the others were suspended for three. All five are on disciplinary probation for a year. 

h/t Washington Post