Army releases redacted police report on altercation during Trump visit to Arlington Cemetery
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Army releases redacted police report on altercation during Trump visit to Arlington Cemetery

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Army has released an almost entirely redacted version of the police report detailing when a staffer for Donald Trump’s campaign allegedly shoved an employee at Arlington National Cemetery who tried to prevent them from photographing a ceremony honoring service members killed in the Afghanistan war withdrawal .

Federal law prohibits campaign or election-related activities at the Army’s national military cemeteries. The four sentences visible in the summary of the report released by court order Friday block a key word that appears to describe the Trump campaign staffer who pushed the cemetery staffer out of the way.

It says the Trump staffer used both hands when he tried to walk past the cemetery employee. Both names are redacted and the sworn statement the cemetery worker gave to the police is completely blacked out.

Officials previously said the former president’s staff shoved the cemetery worker when she tried to prevent two people from filming and photographing Trump’s August visit to grave sites in Section 60, a hallowed section where U.S. forces killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are buried.

The report says the cemetery worker declined medical treatment and said she did not want to press charges.

A lawsuit demanding the police report be filed by the Washington-based government transparency group American Oversight, and a federal judge ordered it to be made public by Friday. The group posted the report on its website.

Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, is in a tight race against Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and the row raised questions about the politicization of the military by his campaign.

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, right, and Bob...

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, right, and Bob Quackenbush, deputy chief of staff for Arlington National Cemetery, watch the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington National Cemetery, Aug. 26, 2024, in Arlington, Va. Credit: AP/Alex Brandon

Trump was at the cemetery at the invitation of service members’ families and brought staff to document the visit. He later shared a video from it on TikTok. The video showed scenes of him at the cemetery and includes a voiceover of the Republican presidential candidate blaming the Biden administration for the “disaster” of the withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.

Chioma Chukwu, acting executive director of American Oversight, said in a statement that the group is pleased to have the report released so the public can see “that there is still an ongoing federal law enforcement investigation into the August incident at Arlington National Cemetery.”

Chukwu said the conduct of Trump and his staff “is consistent with his history of politicizing the military and violating clear ethical boundaries, and it is time for the public to get all the facts.”

In a letter accompanying the report, Army Senior Counsel Paul DeAgostino said the redactions were made to protect personal privacy and information compiled for law enforcement purposes. He said the documents are part of an ongoing investigation and their release “could reasonably be expected to disrupt ongoing enforcement proceedings.”

The Army echoed DeAgostino’s comment, saying in a statement that it released the report to comply with the court order, adding that the police investigation “remains open and therefore we are unable to provide additional information at this time.”

The employee declined to press charges, so it’s unclear what law enforcement procedures are underway.

Families of three of the service members killed in a suicide bombing during the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan had invited Trump to a ceremony to mark the third anniversary of the attack. They said the former president knew their children’s stories and has blamed the Biden administration for their deaths.

Some of the families of those service members spoke out in support of Trump at the Republican National Convention in July, in part to address criticism that Trump was not supportive enough of veterans.

In previous comments, the Trump campaign has argued that the Republican presidential candidate’s team was granted access to have a photographer, disputed the claim that a campaign staffer had shoved the cemetery official, and pushed back against any notion that the cemetery official had been unfairly targeted.

A defense official previously said the Trump campaign was warned not to take pictures in Section 60 before their arrival and the altercation.

During a campaign event in Michigan several days after the incident, Trump said family members had asked to take a photo with him at the cemetery.

“They ask me to have a picture and they say I was campaigning,” he complained without bringing up the TikTok video.