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Armed man arrested at Trump golf course had first lady's schedule and Secret Service notes, prosecutors say
ReArmed man arrested at Trump golf course had first lady's schedule and Secret Service notes, prosecutors say
A 38-year-old man arrested at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles allegedly carried over 200 pages of writings, including first lady Melania Trump's schedule and detailed notes on Secret Service personnel, according to court disclosures.
An armed man arrested this month at President Donald Trump's California golf course allegedly possessed more than 200 pages of writings that included first lady Melania Trump's schedule and detailed information about U.S. Secret Service personnel, according to reports from a Los Angeles County court hearing.
Jeanine John Taele, 38, was taken into custody Aug. 2 at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles in Rancho Palos Verdes. Prosecutors said during Wednesday's hearing that Taele had seven notebooks containing 208 pages of drawings and sketches of the golf club, lists of Secret Service schedules, details about individual security personnel, and copies of the first lady's schedule, The Associated Press reported. The writings also included detailed lists about surviving "off the grid," according to the AP.
Los Angeles County Judge John Lonergan Jr. called the allegations "alarming" during the hearing. "This case itself is alarming in this day and age with the violence that is creeping into our everyday lives, especially with our partisanship in the political environment" ahead of the midterms, Lonergan said, according to the AP.
The judge suspended criminal proceedings after a pretrial evaluation indicated Taele was not mentally fit to stand trial and sent the case to a mental health court. Taele will remain jailed until a Sept. 9 hearing at Hollywood Mental Health Court, according to the AP.
Taele was arrested after plainclothes federal agents spotted him walking the grounds of the golf club, taking photographs and videos and appearing to monitor security-planning activities ahead of Trump's visit. Deputies who detained Taele allegedly found a 16-round magazine loaded with hollow-point ammunition in his pants pocket, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Authorities searched his vehicle and recovered a loaded pistol with a round in the chamber and another magazine containing hollow-point ammunition.
Taele claimed he worked for the State Department and was at the golf course for a security detail. Investigators later searched Taele's Downey home and recovered an illegally modified AR-platform rifle, a.45-caliber pistol, body armor, high-capacity magazines, bulk ammunition, radio signal devices, and multiple notebooks containing what authorities described at the time as "concerning statements."
The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force, the Secret Service, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department have been investigating the case. The Secret Service previously said it does not comment on specific protective intelligence matters but "thoroughly investigates any information or activity that may reasonably be perceived as a protective intelligence concern or indicate a potential threat or directed interest toward any individual under Secret Service protection."
Taele, a Marine who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, has a public defender, A.J. Bayne, who cautioned against drawing conclusions about his client's motives. "He's a veteran, he served our country, and I don't know enough right now, but he has a family that loves him, that has huge support for him," Bayne told the AP, adding that "people assume too much" about Taele's motives.
Trump addressed the arrest earlier this month. "Well, the only thing I get a little solace from is, they say only consequential presidents. And I am definitely consequential," Trump said during an appearance on "Fox News @ Night."
