Teen Trump supporter threatens two women with machete at Florida polling station, police say

NEPTUNE BEACH, FL. An 18-year-old Florida boy who supports presidential candidate Donald Trump has been charged with a felony after police say he used a machete to threaten voters at the polls on Tuesday.

Police Chief Michael Key Jr. said at a press conference that Caleb James Williams was one of eight men, seven of whom were minors, who went to the polling station parking lot to “protest and confront the opposite political side.”

Key says a group of teenagers approached those waving signs and it “devolved into a verbal altercation.” He says Williams brandished a machete in an “aggressive, threatening position over the head” of two women, aged 54 and 71.

According to Neptune Beach police records, Williams is charged with aggravated assault on a person 65 years of age or older and displaying a dangerous weapon.

“I am extremely proud of my agency for handling this incident quickly and efficiently to continue to keep this polling place safe for voters,” Key said. “The group was there for no other reason than the evil intent to cause a disturbance.

“This is not a purely First Amendment incident, but rather they were there just to make a noise.”

Williams, a restaurant assistant, is being held in the Duval County Jail on $55,000 bond, jail records show. If the registered Republican is released, the judge ordered him to stay 1,000 feet (300 meters) from any polling place, except to vote in person and wear an ankle monitor.

“Violence and intimidation have no place in our democratic process,” Duval County Democratic Party said in the statementt. “The Duval County Democratic Party supports those who seek to express their views peacefully and without fear of reprisal. We urge all citizens to continue to participate in public activities respectfully and legally.”

AND statement from the District Republican Party “The Duval County Republican Party thanks law enforcement for the quick arrest of the person involved. In an environment of high political tension, with President Trump surviving two assassination attempts and Republican supporters being derided by Joe Biden as Nazis and called ‘trash,’ we call for calm as we approach the end of this election season.”

(The Associated Press contributed to this story.)