Rhode Island state Senate candidate Jeann Lugo, who was running as a Republican, has dropped out of the state Senate election after being accused of assault by his Democratic opponent Jennifer Rourke.
Rourke posted a video to Twitter that shows a man hitting her while at a pro-choice rally following the United States Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Lugo dropped out of the race on Saturday after being arraigned on assault and disorderly conduct charges. He was released on his own recognizance. According to The Providence Journal, Lugo did not deny punching Rourke, who has filed a police report and is planning to press charges against him.
"I'm not going to deny," Lugo said after Rourke said he punched her twice. "It was very chaotic, so I can't really tell you right now. Everything happened very fast."
"I will not be running for any office this fall," Lugo posted on Twitter. He then deleted his account.
Public Safety Commissioner Steven Pare confirmed that the Providence police have launched an investigation into officer Lugo after the assault. The former Republican candidate was also placed on administrative leave with pay.
"The Providence Police Department is criminally investigating the behavior of an off duty Providence Police Officer last evening during a protest at the Rhode Island State House where a female subject was assaulted," said Lindsay Lague, a Public Information Officer. Lague added that Lugo "was placed on administrative leave with pay this morning, pending a criminal investigation and administrative review."
Lugo will be in court on July 8, says Lague.
“I’ve seen the video and it’s immensely disturbing. Those responsible will be held fully accountable,” said Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza on Twitter.
"To me, this feels like an act of political violence similar to the acts of violence that we have seen across the U.S.," Rourke said. "I'm a Black woman running for office. There was no need, no need for any of this. I'm not going to give up."
Rourke, who is running for a state Senate seat in Warwick, Rhode Island, was one of those speaking out against SCOTUS decision to overturn Roe v. Wade during a protest outside Rhode Island’s State House on Friday night.
The demonstrators were seen holding signs which read, “SCOTUS KILLS”, and “ABORT THE COURT”. Jocelyn Foye, the director of The Womxn Project, organized the rally. Foye called the overturning “devastating”, as thirteen states in the country have already implemented “trigger laws” to ban abortion, with only five of anti-abortion states making an exception to end a pregnancy in the case of rape or incest.