Activist alleges assault outside pubTV studio before election debate

Police are investigating an alleged assault outside the studios of Kentucky Educational Television in Lexington before a Congressional election debate Monday night (Oct. 25), reports the Lexington Herald-Leader. The incident occurred as Republican U.S. Senate nominee Rand Paul arrived at the KET studio to debate Attorney General Jack Conway, his Democratic opponent. Police say a Paul volunteer, Tim Proffitt, is being served with a criminal summons after he was seen on video stepping on Lauren Lizabeth Valle's head. Valle, an activist with the progressive group MoveOn.org, was trying to give Paul a fake award portraying him as a tool of big business. The Paul campaign later issued a statement saying it had "disassociated itself from the volunteer who took part in this incident, and once again urges all activists — on both sides — to remember that their political passions should never manifest themselves in physical altercations of any kind.” Valle received a concussion. "The stomping was one of two reported to Lexington police outside the debate," the paper noted.