Man Who Took Pickax to Trump's Star Now Facing Years in Prison
Mainly owing to his work as a producer of the Miss Universe pageant, President Donald Trump was honored with a star bearing his name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles in 2007 — long before he became a figure in national politics.
That star has been vandalized several times since Trump entered the political scene in 2015, and was most recently destroyed in July by a man with a pickax in an incident that was caught on video and resulted in the man’s arrest.
According to Heavy.com, that man has been identified as Austin Clay, a 24-year-old California native. Though he faces up to three years behind bars on a charge of felony vandalism, he has no regrets over what he did, and even seemed proud of the support he has received from several Trump-hating liberal celebrities.
It was initially reported by TMZ in early August that Clay had been charged by the Los Angeles County District Attorney with one count of felony vandalism for destroying Trump’s star on the Walk of Fame.
Should Clay be found guilty — and he’s pretty much already confessed to the crime he was caught on video committing — he could be sentenced to a maximum of three years, according to The Daily Caller. He’s already gotten notoriety out of the deed.
https://twitter.com/JonathanNBCLA/status/1022076425308753920
In the aftermath of Clay’s destruction of the star, brawls broke out between anti- and pro-Trump protesters in the area, a conservative street artist filled the Walk of Fame with dozens of fake Trump stars to make up for the destruction of the real one, and a neighboring city council passed a resolution calling for the star’s ultimate removal from the Walk of Fame … a development Clay fully supported, so as to avoid further violence and destruction.
Clay spoke out in a video about the crime he committed after being released from jail and made it clear that he has no regrets over his criminally destructive actions, even as he could face significant time behind bars for them, according to a separate post from TMZ.
It is unclear who posted the $20,000 bond to secure his release, and potential future jail time aside, Clay will also be on the hook with the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce for the $3,000 cost of replacing Trump’s destroyed star.
Clay blamed his antics on Trump’s stance on illegal immigration — specifically the temporary separation of illegal alien families after being detained at the border — and reveled in the celebrity love he has received from fellow Trump-haters.
“I just felt really passionate because of what happened with the immigrants and (Trump) stripping children away from their parents,” Clay stated on the video. “And that just sort of set me off.”
“I think Donald Trump represents everything that everybody with half a brain and half a heart in this country resents,” the confessed vandal continued, prior to bragging about the celebrity support he has received.
“Robert De Niro left me a voice message. He wanted to say … he wanted to give me a high-five. Chelsea Handler, Mark Hamill,” said Clay, rattling off the names of the two Trump-hating actors and one particularly unfunny Trump-hating “comedian.”
“I think I did, like, a real good act. Personally, I don’t feel resentful. I feel proud of myself,” he added.
Hopefully this moronically destructive anti-Trumper gets held fully accountable for his stupidity and vandalism. Say what you will about President Trump and his policies, but destruction of public property — which must be replaced at a cost to taxpayers — is not an acceptable way to express political differences.
Sadly, this idiot vandal is being held up on the left as some sort of hero for his destruction of Trump’s star, a dumb move that in no way, shape or form will have any sort of impact on Trump’s presidency, and is merely the equivalent of a jealous toddler knocking over another child’s tower of blocks after that other child has moved on to create bigger things with better toys.
It would be nice if this self-righteous imbecile is held accountable for his ignorant actions, but given the deep animosity to Trump in the L.A.-area, we aren’t holding our breath that the fool will actually see a full three years behind bars.
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