Trump Campaign Manager Won’t Face Prosecution


Donald Trump’s campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, will not be prosecuted for a battery charge in connection to former Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields, Florida prosecutors announced on Thursday.

“Although the facts support the allegation that Lewandowski did grab Miss Fields’ arm against her will, there is sufficient evidence to presume his innocence,” Florida state attorney Dave Aronberg said in a press conference.

The decision not to pursue the battery charge should come as a major relief to Trump, who has been under fire for defending Lewandowski despite mounting evidence he forcibly grabbed Fields by the arm as she tried to approach the presidential candidate at a March 8 campaign event. Since the incident, both Lewandowski and Trump repeatedly denied Fields’ accusation and attempted to discredit her as an “attention seeker” and “delusional.”

But weeks later, surveillance footage that appeared to corroborate Fields’ claims was released, prompting Jupiter, Florida, police to charge Lewandowski with simple battery. Even then, Trump continued to insist his campaign manager was innocent.

Despite Trump’s public defense, recent reports say Lewandowski’s role in the campaign has diminished.

“The crew’s expanding,” one source told Politico. “The inner circle is not what it used to be.”

DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And we need your support like never before, to fight back against the existential threats American democracy faces. Fundraising for nonprofit media is always a challenge, and we need all hands on deck right now. We have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate