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US detains man holding 'Death to Obama' sign

(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-08-14 08:56

US President Barack Obama speaks at a town hall on health insurance reform at Portsmouth High School in Portsmouth, New Hampshire August 11, 2009. [Agencies]

HAGERSTOWN, Maryland: The Secret Service is investigating a man who authorities said held a sign reading "Death to Obama" outside a town hall meeting on health-care reform in western Maryland.

The sign also read, "Death to Michelle and her two stupid kids," referring to the first name of President Barack Obama's wife, said Washington County Sheriff's Capt. Peter Lazich.

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Lazich said deputies detained the unidentified, 51-year-old man near the entrance to Hagerstown Community College about 1 pm Wednesday after getting calls from a number of people attending the meeting held by Sen. Ben Cardin, a Maryland Democrat. Obama was not at the meeting.

The sheriff's office turned the man over to the Secret Service, Lazich said.

Barbara Golden, special agent in charge of the agency's Baltimore field office, said Thursday that an investigation is ongoing but declined further comment. A spokesman at the agency's Washington headquarters also declined to discuss the investigation.

Police said there were no other arrests among the nearly 1,000 people, some carrying protest signs, who came to the college for the meeting or demonstrated off-campus.

Cardin's national communications director, Sue Walitsky, called the incident "unfortunate." She said she was unaware of it until Thursday morning.