66°
The incident happened in a large crowd gathered in Penn Square to protest former President Donald J. Trump who was having a Townhall in Lancaster City as part of his reelection campaign on Sunday, Oct. 20.
A person who was in the throng of protesters was being detained by Pennsylvania State Police when the crowd "began moving quickly toward the arresting Trooper and detainee as they were making their way back to a police cruiser," around 6 p.m., as stated in the police release.
"Lancaster City police officers and State Troopers attempted to set up a line and pushed the crowd back to create space between the officer and the advancing group," the police said.
That's when Susan Stava, a New York City-based freelance photographer, was knocked to the ground by a City Police Officer, as numerous outlets reported.
EMS treated her scratched arm and bumped head at the scene, as CBS21 showed in their coverage. Stava filed a police report before returning to NYC, according to LNP/Lancaster Online.
Following the investigation into the incident, the police explained that they were attempting to prevent "the crowd from interfering with the arrest, ensuring the safety of both the officer and the detainee" and were "working to safeguard the crowd as multiple vehicles attempted to navigate through the Penn Square intersection."
They pointed out that situations like this can quickly escalate and said "Officers may not always be able to immediately identify an individual's intent when the group is rapidly moving toward a restricted area."
Of course, this is of more concern to law enforcement following the multiple assassination attempts made against Trump.
The police concluded that "the officer followed the law including the Bureau’s training, policies, and procedures."
They added, "It's important for everyone, including media personnel, to remain aware of their surroundings during dynamic situations where safety conditions can change rapidly."
Daily Voice reached out to Stava for comment but has yet to hear back at the time of publishing.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Lancaster and receive free news updates.
