(C) Florida Phoenix
This story was originally published by Florida Phoenix and is unaltered.
 . . . . . . . . . .



Report: Crist campaign chief quit following his domestic violence arrest in Maryland [1]

['Michael Moline', 'More From Author', '- October']

Date: 2022-10-21  

Democrat Charlie Crist’s campaign manager, who resigned on Wednesday citing “a family matter,” was arrested the day before in Maryland in an alleged domestic violence case, NBC news is reporting.

Austin John Durrer faces a second-degree misdemeanor assault charge, the network said in a news post.

Asked about the report on Friday, Crist spokesperson Samantha Ramirez issued a terse written statement by email: “Mr. Durrer was dismissed as soon as the campaign learned of this situation.” However, the campaign did not acknowledge the arrest in advance of the NBC report.

Crist, who served in a variety of statewide elected position, including governor, before winning election to the U.S. House as a Democrat, is trailing Gov. Ron DeSantis in the polls and in fundraising with the gubernatorial election 18 days away.

Republican DeSantis’ campaign was highlighting the development on Twitter.

“A few days ago, Charlie Crist’s campaign manager abruptly resigned. Crist’s campaign cited a ‘family matter.’ Florida Democrat media repeated this talking point. He was actually arrested for domestic violence assault. He’s awaiting trial in Maryland,” the DeSantis War Room account tweeted.

Christina Pushaw, rapid response director for the campaign, posted a follow-up shortly thereafter.

“Contrary to what @CharlieCrist’s campaign spokesperson @Sam_RamirezQ claims, domestic violence isn’t just a “family matter” … it is a criminal court matter. In this case, the charge is 2nd Degree Assault,” she wrote.

Durrer acknowledged his arrest in an interview with NBC, saying the incident involved Amanda Leonard, the mother of his child, at the home they share in Cambridge, Md., the news organization reported.

The couple issued a short statement, NBC reported:

“Very sadly, an incident took place this week at our home that we both regret. We are both working to drop legal charges and move forward. Our primary focus at this time is our daughter, our greatest joy, and we appreciate privacy and respect as we navigate this as a family.”

Durrer reportedly was released on $10,000 bond and given a Dec. 7 court date. He was ordered to have no contact with the alleged victim, vacate the home, and surrender any firearms he owns. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $500 fine.

[END]
---
[1] Url: https://floridaphoenix.com/2022/10/21/report-crist-campaign-chief-quit-following-his-domestic-violence-arrest-in-maryland/

Published and (C) by Florida Phoenix
Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/floridaphoenix/