Politically motivated crimes crop up across region

As emotions nationwide run high in the days following the election, there have been a few incidents of politically-motivated crimes in Western Montana.

A woman in Kalispell protesting against President-elect Donald Trump said two boys broke her signs, and a man in Missoula claimed he had been assaulted because he was a Trump supporter. In another incident, vandals targeted the Republican headquarters in Polson.

The case in Kalispell involved a woman who says she intends to keep protesting against Trump, even after an alleged incident in which two teenage boys broke her signs on the Saturday after Election Day.

Jennifer Allen, 62, said she was very upset by the election results. As a self-described “old feminist,” she believed some of Trump’s statements regarding women and minorities were unacceptable.

She referenced the 2005 tape in which Trump privately said men of celebrity status can do anything they wanted to women, including “grab them by the p---y.”

She has devoted an hour to protest each day since the election. In those days, she has received many responses. Some folks honk in support. Others display a middle finger. Some ask her why she would stand and protest by herself in the middle of a predominantly conservative city.

“Nobody knows how to protest anymore,” Allen said. “Our younger generation does not know.”

Allen said most of the conversations she’s had have been a peaceful, eye-opening dialogue, but on Nov. 11, things turned a bit more violent.

Two hooded teen boys ran up behind Allen without her hearing them, Allen claimed. They grabbed her sign she was holding and yelled, “F--- Hillary” as they took off, and broke the sign into pieces. Not deterred, Allen grabbed another sign and went back to protesting. The two boys returned and repeated the scenario.

The second incident was seen by a man who encouraged Allen to report the incident to police. The police came and Allen told them she had not been hurt.

She said the police did a good job of investigating. She told them she was not surprised that one of the signs prompted an emotional response. That was kind of the point, Allen said.

The sign in question said “Not my p---y.”

One car had stopped and its occupants told her the sign was offensive.

“I told them, ‘yes it is offensive, and our president-to-be has used these words,’” Allen said.

Allen said she does not intend to let the incidents hinder her protests.

“Protest is absolutely in the blood of America,” Allen said. “They conveniently forget that the Boston Tea Party was a protest.”

Kalispell Police Administrative Captain Wade Rademacher said there was little more his office could do about the incident because Allen did not want to pursue charges.

“It was determined an assault had not been committed,” Rademacher said. “The boys tore up the sign she had ... She did not want to pursue anything.”

The department has not seen any other politically involved cases since the election, according to Rademacher.

SGT. TRAVIS Welsh of the Missoula Police Department said there was also little that could be done after a Plains man claimed he had been assaulted in Missoula in the early morning hours of Nov. 11. The man told police he had been assaulted in the 100 block of West Front Street and believed the incident was politically motivated.

Welsh said he was unable to release the man’s name or the motivation involved.

“The person we spoke to did not want us to follow up,” Welsh said. “He did not want us to pursue charges.”

News of the alleged attack went viral on a Facebook post made by Michelle Mercer of Whitefish. In the post, Mercer wrote that a friend had been assaulted by four others “for voting for who he thought had the best qualities to lead our country,” apparently Trump.

The post showed a man bleeding from the head and went on to say, “ironic that Hillary claims to be against ‘hate and violence’ and her supporters riot and cause violence. Please Share.”

The post was shared more than 3,000 times.

Welsh said the department did reach out to those mentioned in the post, but that they did not want to pursue an investigation.

Multiple attempts to contact the reported victim of the attack were unsuccessful; however the Missoulian reportedly spoke with the man, who said that he was hit in the back of the head and in his genitals by a group of men who had asked if he supported Donald Trump. The man reportedly answered yes.

IN ANOTHER incident, vandals targeted the Lake County Republican Party Headquarters in Polson a few days after the election. Vulgar language and pictures, anarchy signs and the name “Trump” were reportedly spray-painted on the outside of the building. Police Cpl. George Simpson said he’s sure the vandalism was tied to the political tension in the country.

The graffiti was reported to police Nov. 12. Officers are trying to find out who is responsible.

RACHEL Carroll Rivas, co-director of the Montana Human Rights Network in Helena, said she has received a handful of reports from people in the Flathead who felt intimidated by others’ remarks in the days since the election.

She is not surprised the individuals have not made reports to police because much of what was reported was hateful remarks not threatening enough to fall outside the realm of free speech. Nonetheless, the people who reported the incidents felt scared, she said.

Carroll Rivas said her group has received nearly two dozen reports of intimidation statewide since the election. It typically takes months for the group to rack up that many reports, she said.

Carroll Rivas believes two factors spurred the uptick of calls. Perhaps the results of the elections have emboldened those who want to make hateful remarks, she said. It is also possible that those who are targeted feel more of a need to report the incidents, she reasoned.

Either way, Carroll Rivas said her group encourages people to contact law enforcement if they do feel intimidated.

“We help connect them with support so that they feel safe,” Carroll Rivas said.

She hopes others will stand up if they see someone making hateful remarks.

“I think it’s the job of white people to stand up when they see racism and for straight people to step in when they see homophobic views and for men to says something if someone’s saying something misogynistic,” Carroll Rivas said.

Reporter Megan Strickland can be reached at 758-4459 or mstrickland@dailyinterlake.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report.