2 days Ago By Jeremiah Hassel
An Idaho man has been arrested after he allegedly struck a counterprotester with his car during a protest at a Tesla dealership on Saturday. Police said Christopher Talbot, 70, made "an obscene gesture" at a 49-year-old counterprotester before striking him with his car. He was charged with aggravated battery.
About 30 protesters and 200 counterprotesters gathered for an event at a Tesla dealership on Franklin Road in western Idaho. The protest was just one of hundreds across the country and around the world at Tesla dealerships and factories, including in New York , Maryland and Arizona this weekend. Highly contagious airborne disease outbreak in US sparks travel warning Dad makes friend dig own grave and kill himself after raping his daughter, six Police said the victim had been driving a truck with pro-Trump flags and had just parked and exited his vehicle when Talbot "struck him with his car.
" "The victim drove himself to a local hospital, where he was treated and released [with] non-life-threatening injuries," the police said. Police didn't identify the victim apart from describing him as a counterprotester. Talbot was booked into the Ada County Jail, though it wasn't clear if he was granted bond.
"The Meridian Police Department reminds people to respect everyone’s right to protest and express their 1st Amendment Rights without resorting to violence," police said. The incident comes after a string of attacks including vandalism and arson were reported against Tesla cars, dealerships and charging stations across the country over recent weeks. Protestors rallied against Tesla CEO Elon Musk for his work with President Donald Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The agency is behind a push to cut federal spending and has slashed thousands of jobs. Musk exposes Trump's brutal 3-word 'scalpel' advice in DOGE cuts briefing Elon Musk attempts to boost Tesla sales as he open 24-hour diner FBI announces task force to investigate escalating 'violent Tesla attacks' Musk blamed the "far left" for the vandalism during a Thursday interview with Fox News, calling them "the real villains here." "And the president’s made it clear, we’re going to go after them," Musk said during that interview.
"The ones providing the money, the ones pushing the lies and propaganda, we’re going after them." The protesters told NBC News that they were demonstrating against Musk's federal cuts with DOGE. One, J.
F. Garcia, a protester in the Meatpacking District of Manhattan, said on Saturday, "We have a crazy person who's blowing through our democratic processes with no qualifications." Garcia added, according to NBC News: "He was not elected.
He has on idea what he's doing. I think his phrase is, 'Move fast and break things.' That's not how you bring about positive change.
".
