Update: Hutchinson's GoFundMe account remains active despite earlier reports that the page was being shut down for violating the crowdsourcing site's terms of service. An update to the page posted on Tuesday states:
We have received communication from gofundme they are working hard to ensure this campaign is handled properly and the funds are given to help hoyt or can be returned to you who have donated. We assure all supporters this page is directly going to support Hoyt, as is the cashapp tag we posted here earlier. Bare with us folks as we navigate this unfamiliar terrain. We didn't expect this outpouring of support and we wish to thank all the supporters. We will continue to update here regarding these funds.
The man who knifed a “Baby Trump” balloon in Tuscaloosa over the weekend reportedly raised $40,000 for his defense through a GoFundMe account before the fund was taken down Monday for violating the site’s “fine print.”
Hoyt Hutchinson, a 32-year-old Alabama man, said he was furious when he saw anti-Trump protesters flying the infamous giant balloon of Trump in a diaper outside the Alabama-LSU game on Saturday, in which Trump was in attendance. In response, Hutchinson said he went out, changed his wardrobe to appear to be a regular football game-goer, then used a razor blade to slash the balloon.
“I went and bought me an Alabama shirt,” Hutchinson explained on the Rick & Bubba show earlier this week. The man then used a razor to slash the balloon shortly before being arrested for First-Degree Criminal Mischief.
“I’m not young but I’m not old. I’m sort of middle aged," he went on. “I feel like a lot of people my age don’t keep up with the news and politics the way they should. I watch the news every night.”
Hutchinson had posted a video on Facebook right before taking a knife to the display, saying he was “going down here to make a scene...I’m shaking I’m so mad right now. I’m fixin’ to pop this balloon. Stay tuned. It should be interesting.”
In a matter of hours, Hutchinson, who set a modest $6,000 goal on his own fundraising campaign, had raked in more than 6 times that amount.
“Some liberals tried to come to my hometown and start some trouble. That ain’t happening,” he said later. “I did get arrested. I got charged. That’s all right. I’d do it again given the opportunity.”
Unfortunately for Hutchinson, GoFundMe doesn’t allow their site to be used to crowdfund for a person’s legal defense.
“We have been reported by the sympathizers," Hutchinson wrote on the page."Apparently we didn’t read the fine print. GoFundMe is not going to allow these generous donations to help Hoyt.”
(Cover Photo: Flickr/Loco Steve)