Voting rights groups decry dropped charges against machete-wielding Donald Trump supporter

Florida votes!

Eighteen-year-old Donald Trump supporter Caleb Williams made local and national headlines last year after he was arrested for brandishing a machete at a Duval County polling site in an apparent effort to disturb Democratic voters.

Now he’ll enjoy the notoriety without consequence. The Office of State Attorney Melissa Nelson, a fellow Republican, dropped all charges against him, including aggravated assault, improper exhibition of a dangerous weapon, voter intimidation and voter suppression.

In court documents filed last week, Assistant State Attorney Octavius Holliday Jr. described the machete as one of several “tools” Williams and his friends had waved around and that while the teen’s actions were “ill-advised and perhaps zealous,” they did not “rise to the level of voter intimidation.”

Five voting rights groups wholeheartedly disagree.

The incident in question occurred Oct. 29, 2024, when Williams and seven other teenagers arrived at a Neptune Beach early voting site with Trump flags and approached supporters of Kamala Harris. Soon after, Neptune Beach Police Chief Michael Key said, Williams “brandished a machete in an aggressive, threatening posture over his head” at two women, who at the time were ages 71 and 54.

Frantic calls to police were made, and Williams was arrested on site. Bipartisan condemnation of the stunt, which resulted in no physical harm to anyone, soon followed.

“The group was there for no other reason but for ill intentions to cause a disturbance (and) to say I am disturbed is an understatement; I am mad that this happened in Neptune Beach,” Key said then. “They were simply there to cause a ruckus.”

But not to an extent egregious enough to warrant giving Williams a criminal record, the State Attorney’s Office decided.

Amy Keith, Director of Common Cause Florida, said Floridians living in the 4th Judicial Circuit deserve a better lead prosecutor.

“The actions exhibited in this case caused fear and harm, and undoubtedly constitute voter intimidation. Across this country, the law is simple: It is your right to vote without intimidation,” she said in a statement.

“Floridians deserve a State Attorney who will protect their right to vote, free from intimidation, not excuse illegal threatening behavior as simply ‘tool’ carrying and ‘zealous’ support.”

Chanae Jackson, Organizing Director for Florida for All, said the incident “was more than a random disruption.”

“It was an act of terror, part of a larger pattern of extreme behavior fostered by leadership that emboldens dangerous, divisive actions,” she said. “Leaders who promote or tolerate such scare tactics are risking the safety of our communities and encouraging others to behave recklessly, leaving all Floridians at risk.”

Adora Obi Nweze, President of the NAACP Florida State Conference, said the failure to prosecute Williams “is a breach of trust to all Floridians.” Kirk Bailey, Senior Democracy Defense Manager for All Voting is Local, concurred and said letting Williams off the hook “sets a dangerous precedent” for others “who would threaten violence against voters in an attempt to undermine democracy, for any reason, in the future.”

Debbie Chandler and Cecile Scoon, co-presidents of the League of Women Voters of Florida, called Williams’ actions and the State Attorney’s decision to let him off the hook “outrageous.”

“No one should be allowed to threaten others at or near a voting precinct,” they said. “The record shows that the aggressor was also shouting support for one presidential candidate when he threatened the women at the precinct. This case should never have been dismissed.”