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Democratic campaign office in Arizona closes down after being shot at 3 times in 3 weeks

Democratic campaign office in Arizona closes down after being shot at 3 times in 3 weeks

USA Today
USA Today
-October 11, 2024

The Arizona Democratic party closed a field office in Tempe, Arizona that was the target of three shootings in three weeks.

The incidents come amid a 2024 election cycle that has seen multiple instances of threats or violence, including two assassination attempts on former President Donald Trump.

The office in Tempe served as a location for Democrats' campaign work in the area. The building was hit by BB gun pellets and firearm rounds. No injuries were reported in any of the three incidents, as all of the shootings happened late at night when no one was at the office.

The candidates and staffers who had been working out of the office have moved their activities to other, undisclosed locations, said Lauren Kuby, a state Senate candidate in Legislative District 8.

Tempe, a suburb of Phoenix and home to Arizona State University, is inside the Arizona 4th congressional district which is represented by Democratic U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton, who took over for Republican Paul Gosar.

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The latest shooting at the Democrats' field office occurred early on Sunday, Oct. 6. The other two shootings happened in September and within the span of a week − the first on Sept. 16 and the second on Sept. 23. All of the incidents left no injuries as they occurred between midnight and 1 a.m. local time.

Police told the Arizona Republic, part of the USA TODAY Network, that the damage to the office included bullet holes in the glass front door and a window.

Concerns of violence during this year's campaign have become a part of the political dialogue after two separate assassination attempts on former President Trump, one at his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, and the other at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. Other threats of violence were reported in Virginia and Oklahoma. Here's what to know.

July: Butler, Pennsylvania

On July 13, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks fired at Trump during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

The gunman was shot and killed by Secret Service agents, but Crooks’ gunshots left one attendee dead and two others seriously injured. Trump was injured in the upper part of his right ear.

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August: Virginia

In August, a Virginia man was arrested and charged with threatening to kill Vice President Kamala Harris. Officials said the man, Frank Lucio Carillo made “threats against the Vice President of the United States,” on the conservative social media site GETTR.

September: West Palm Beach, Florida

The second attempt on Trump’s life happened on Sept. 15 at the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida. At the time, the former president was golfing when a Secret Service agent spotted a gun barrel in the bushes. 

When agents opened fire, the suspect who was later identified as 58-year-old Ryan Routh fled and was later apprehended by authorities. Routh never fired a shot at Trump and the former president was left unharmed.

October: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Earlier this week in Oklahoma City, an Afghan national was charged with conspiring to conduct a terrorist attack on Election Day on behalf of ISIS, according to a release from the Department of Justice. 

The man charged was 27-year-old Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi who is alleged to have conspired and attempted to "provide material support to ISIS and obtained firearms and ammunition to conduct a violent attack on U.S. soil in the name of ISIS.”

Contributing: Nolan Clay, James Powel

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.

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