'Trump Train' trial: Defendant claims 'first amendment right' during highway confrontation.
Six individuals who were previously supporters of former President Donald Trump are facing charges of political intimidation and attempting to run a bus off the road.
The woman who was accused of political intimidation for being part of a convoy of former President Donald Trump supporters who surrounded a Biden-Harris campaign bus on a busy Texas interstate in 2020 claims that the incident was an exercise in free speech and was not intended to impede the progress of the bus.
Six individuals, including Randi Ceh and her husband Steve Ceh, are being sued for swarming a bus on Interstate 35 while it was en route to a campaign event on Oct. 30, 2020.
"Randi Ceh stated on Monday, according to the San Antonio Express-News, that they exercised their first amendment right to drive down the highway during the second week of the trial. They added, "We did a 'Trump Train' and it was cool.""
She characterized the event as a "team versus team" political activity and maintained that their goal was not to intimidate anyone.
Last week, the trial began, and the seven-person jury listened to testimony from plaintiffs, including former Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis, who stated that she felt like she was being "held captive" and the bus driver, who claimed he felt "threatened" and feared for his life.
Six Trump supporters who were part of a convoy of dozens of pickup trucks and cars adorned with large Trump flags that converged on the bus days before the 2020 presidential election are being sued by Davis, the driver, a campaign volunteer, and a staffer.
The plaintiffs claim that the supporters of Trump are responsible for assault and intimidation tactics, which violate state law and the federal Enforcement Act of 1871, also known as the Ku Klux Klan Act. This law was enacted by Congress during the Reconstruction Era to protect the rights of Black men to vote by prohibiting political violence.
The defendants argue that a campaign staff member in the white SUV initiated the collision along the highway, while the plaintiffs claim that the group drove recklessly and attempted to run the bus off the road. In one incident captured on video, a "Trump Train" pickup truck and a Biden campaign SUV collided while trailing the bus, although nobody was hurt. Video leading up to the collision shows the SUV repeatedly driving in between lanes.
The lawsuit, filed in 2021, seeks punitive and compensatory damages.
The defendants, including the Cehs and the Mesaros family, claim they were merely expressing their support for Trump in a loud manner, according to their attorney. Additionally, their actions were protected by free speech, and the trial is an attempt to drain conservatives of their funds, the defense argues.
On Monday, Sam Hall, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, tried to prove that Ceh was aware of the convoy's impact on the bus's progress, citing posts on a Facebook group that read "SURROUNDED" and "They did not stop! Too much Trump support so they are going straight through to Austin."
Randi Ceh, the Facebook group administrator, explained to Hall that she did not remove certain posts because users have the right to free speech under the First Amendment. Additionally, she mentioned using the "#BlocktheBus" hashtag in her posts, as reported by the San Antonio Express-News.
In 2020, Randi Ceh, a resident of New Braunfels, and her husband established a Facebook page after relocating from Las Vegas, where they had previously participated in "flag runs" to support then-President Trump's re-election campaign, as reported by the outlet.
She stated that the tradition of "Trump Trains" in New Braunfels continued, with over 1,000 vehicles included in one "Trump Train" on the evening of Oct. 29, the night before the bus incident.
"She stated that it grew larger every week, as reported by the outlet," she said.
Ceh responded to Hall's inquiry about the purpose of "Trump Trains" by stating that she was unsure of what he was referring to, implying that nothing specific had occurred.
According to the San Antonio Express-News, Randi Ceh stated that she anticipated the Oct. 30 "Trump Train" to be similar to the previous ones organized by the husband-and-wife duo. She was not originally intended to be part of the convoy but joined briefly as it happened on her way home from work.
Hall shared through text screenshots that Ceh had updated the Facebook group with the location of the bus, which she obtained through a text message exchange with other "Trump Train" organizers.
The outlet reported that he also reposted her group messages about Democrats being "Demoncrats" and the "epitome of evil."
On Monday, Steve Ceh testified in court and showed a video of the defendant at a gathering of Trump supporters, where he referred to Oct. 30 as a "good day" and called the people on the bus "socialists." According to the San Antonio Express-News, he described Trump Trains as having a "family atmosphere" and being filled with "prayer" and "faith."
The trial is scheduled to resume Tuesday.
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