Anti-Trump protester Domenic Santana has returned after being jailed for jumping in front of ex-President Donald Trump’s motorcade in Miami in June (Pictures: Reuters/AP)
Getting arrested for charging Donald Trump’s motorcade after the ex-president’s second indictment has not stopped one man – he’s back protesting outside a courthouse for Trump’s third arraignment.
Domenic Santana, 61, has emerged outside a federal court in Washington, DC, wearing a black-and-white striped prisoner outfit in eager anticipation of Trump facing charges for alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Donning makeshift shackles and a ball and chain, Santana held up a poster of a photoshopped mugshot of Trump, bald and wearing an orange jumpsuit.
‘You do the crime you pay the time,’ reads the sign. ‘Your time is up.’
Protester Domenic Santana of Miami, Florida, holds a sign outside the E Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse in Washington, DC, on Thursday (Picture: Getty Images)
The back of the placard reads: ‘Lock him up.’
Santana, wearing the same jail costume, appeared on national television in June running in front of Trump’s motorcade as he departed a federal court in Miami after being arraigned in the classified documents case.
Holding a sign, Santana dashed in front of a black car, and was pushed away off the road by a Secret Service agent. His sudden move caused other protesters to start trying to follow the motorcade, but no one took an action as bold.
Santana was arrested and charged with obstructing traffic, disorderly conduct and resisting an officer without violence. After spending a night in jail and bailing out, Santana had 15 camera crews waiting for him.
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Domenic Santana was detained after jumping in front of the car carrying former President Donald Trump as he left the Wilkie D Ferguson Jr U.S. Courthouse on June 13, 2023, in Miami (Picture: AP)
‘It was a rough day. I got the (expletive) beat out of me,’ admitted Santana, according to the Ashbury Park Express.
Still, he expressed no regret.
‘Yeah, it was worth it. Look, look,’ Santana said, pointing at a group of reporters surrounding him. ‘I’m getting the message out. He (Trump) shoulda been locked up a long time ago.’
His arrest report, obtained by WPLG, stated: ‘The defendant’s reckless actions of interrupting the motorcade put the former president’s life in danger.
Domenic Santana holds a sign outside a Washington, DC, courthouse before the arrival of former President Donald Trump, who is facing federal charges in connection with attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat (Picture: Reuters)
‘The defendant’s actions caused the public and media to run toward him, storming the street while the defendant yelled at the Trump supporters as to entice them.’
Asked by a reporter if it was important to him that Trump saw his sign – which read ‘lock him up’ – Santana said: ‘Absolutely, and he did.’
Less than two months later, Santana has traveled to the E Barrett Prettyman Courthouse at the US Capitol to be in Trump’s face again. Trump is scheduled to be arraigned there at 4pm Thursday after special counsel Jack Smith announced a grand jury’s four charges against him in connection to the January 6 Capitol riot.
Santana began standing outside the courthouse hours before Trump’s slated appearance time – ready.
Domenic Santana wore a similar prison striped outfit when he protested in Miami (Picture: AP)
The native of New York is no stranger to flashiness. Before retiring in Miami, Santana purchased the shuttered Stone Pony nightclub in Ashbury Park, New Jersey, and in 2003 rode a white horse to protest a redevelopment plan that would have forced the club into demolition.
‘That was too dramatic,’ Santana told the Ashbury Park Press in 2019. ‘I thought I was like Che Guevara coming in with the revolution.’
But Santana appears poised for another potentially dramatic day around Trump.
Supporters of former President Donald Trump gathered at the E Barrett Prettyman federal courthouse on Thursday (Credits: AP)
He was among a relatively small number of protesters in a calm atmosphere outside the courthouse early Thursday afternoon.
A handful of Trump supporters earlier carried campaign flags that read, ‘Trump for President ’24’ and a sign stating, ‘Trump won’, ABC News reported.
Police walked around the perimeter of the courthouse.
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Protester Domenic Santana, who was arrested for charging Donald Trump motorcade, is back outside a courthouse for his third arraignment.