Democratic Activist Claims Abuse by Allen's Staffers
2006-11-01
Source: Washington Post
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rss feedA Democratic activist who verbally confronted U.S. Sen. George Allen at a campaign rally in Charlottesville yesterday was shoved, put into a headlock and thrown against a window by three men wearing Allen stickers, according to a widely disseminated video of the incident.
W. Michael Stark, who identified himself in an e-mail after the incident as a University of Virginia law student, yelled a question at Allen (R) about whether he had ever spit on his first wife, an unsubstantiated charge that has been circulating on liberal blogs on the Internet. Allen supporters hauled him away from the senator as television cameras rolled.
"I demand that Senator Allen fire the staffers who beat up a constituent attempting to use his constitutional right to petition his government," Stark wrote in an e-mail.
Charlottesville Police Lt. Gary Pleasants said Stark reported the incident yesterday and indicated that he wanted to press assault charges against the men. Pleasants said police are investigating and trying to determine the names of the Allen staffers involved.
"We will find out who the people are, give him the information and he can go to the magistrate and try to obtain a warrant for them," Pleasants said.
On the video, Stark was heckling Allen about rumors that embarrassing material is contained in records from the senator's divorce. Those records have been sealed by a judge and are not accessible. Allen's current wife, Susan, is his second and the mother of his children.
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