By Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services/Arizona Capitol Times
Upset with protesters who tried to block a Donald Trump rally last month in Fountain Hills, Republican state senators voted Thursday to allow judges to impose six-month jail terms on those who stop traffic headed to political rallies.
Sen. John Kavanagh, who lives in the community and whose wife is the mayor, acknowledged it’s already a Class 3 misdemeanor to block traffic.
But he said the maximum penalty of 30 days in jail and a $500 fine might be appropriate for someone “being rowdy on Mill Avenue (in Tempe) and blocking a car.”
What was happening here, Kavanagh said, is people were prevented from going to the event. And he said the intent was even to keep Trump himself from showing up.
