A white Army veteran has been charged with attempted murder in the shooting of a 15-year-old black girl during a tense confrontation at a Trump rally outside the Iowa Capitol last month.
Michael McKinney, 25, allegedly fired his gun into a car carrying four black teen girls, striking one of them in the leg, in Des Moines on Dec. 6, according to an Associated Press investigation.
The investigation revealed a large group of white President Trump supporters clashed with the teens about politics before the shooting began.
The girls were inside a car when the Trump supporters shouted racial slurs at them, officials said.
The rioters then surrounded the car before the driver went in reverse, striking a pickup truck.
That’s when McKinney, who was heavily armed and wearing body armor, allegedly fired his gun at the girls’ car, according to the AP probe.
McKinney later told police he fired the shot in self-defense. On social media, the military vet has shown his support for the far-right group the Proud Boys and posted he’s against the Black Lives Matter movement.
The victim was taken to a local hospital where she was treated for non-life threatening injuries.
McKinney faces 25 years in prison if convicted, and he remains jailed on $500,000 bond.
With Post Wires