ISSE condemns police assault on University of Florida student

The assault on the student, Andrew Meyer, a 21-year-old senior in the College of Journalism and Communications, occurred after Meyer pointedly questioned Kerry on the refusal of himself and the Democratic Party to pursue charges of voter fraud in the 2004 elections, seek to impeach President Bush, or oppose preparations for war against Iran.

Kerry said nothing while six police officers grabbed the student in the midst of his questioning of the senator and proceeded to shock him at least once with a Taser gun. On Tuesday, Kerry refused to condemn the actions of the police. “The police must have had a reason to make their decision,” Kerry said, adding that the attack on the student was “a law enforcement issue.”

The incident began when Meyer approached an open floor microphone during a question-and-answer session. Citing a book by journalist Greg Palast, who documented voting irregularities in the 2004 elections, Meyer said, “[Palast] said you won the 2004 election—isn’t that amazing? There were multiple reports of disenfranchising of black voters on the day of the election in 2004 in Florida and Ohio.”