It is not a law that protects a sitting president from being charged with a crime, it is only a 
Department of Justice policy. Thus, now that Donald Trump is leaving executive office, he needs to be
held accountable for his reckless actions and self-serving conduct while he was president.

More than 380,000 Americans have now died from the pandemic. We are all very aware the
 coronavirus is very contagious. Trump is also very aware the virus can spread very easily and rapidly.
 The widely respected Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and many other health professionals and scientists,
 strongly advise against large gatherings.

However, Trump intentionally and willfully ignored this professional advice and held numerous large
 political rallies across the country to promote his failed reelection bid. Trump held these rallies so he
 could momentarily bask in all the adulation and glory he craves and finds at these rallies. Trump did not
 require masks or social distancing at his rallies.

It would not be difficult to legally prove there were specific deaths as a direct result of attending a
 Trump political rally. Herman Cain, an African American and a former presidential candidate, and also
 the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, comes to mind. Cain died after attending the Trump rally in Tulsa, 
Oklahoma.

State criminal charges could be brought in the context of reckless endangerment, voluntary or 
involuntary manslaughter, or any number of relevant criminal conduct charges. There is a long-standing
 adage that no one is above the law, but Donald Trump, by his actions, certainly thinks he is.

Bob Shippentower

Pendleton