Father of slain Ohio boy asks Trump not to invoke his son in immigration debate

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio (AP) — The father of an Ohio boy killed last year when a Haitian immigrant driver hit a school bus is imploring Donald Trump and other politicians to stop invoking his son’s name in the debate about immigration.

Nathan Clark spoke Tuesday at a Springfield City Council hearing — the same day that the former president and Vice President Kamala Harris debated, and the city in Ohio exploded into the national conversation when Trump repeated false claims demonizing Haitian immigrants there, saying they eat pets.

“This needs to stop now,” Nathan Clark said. “They can vomit all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis and even untrue claims about fluffy pets being ravaged and eaten by community members. However, they are not allowed, nor have they ever been allowed to mention Aiden Clark from Springfield, Ohio. I will listen to them one more time to hear their apologies.”

Eleven-year-old Aiden Clark was killed in August last year when a minivan driven by Hermanio Joseph veered into a school bus carrying Aiden and other students. Aiden died and nearly two dozen others were hurt.

In May, a Clark County jury deliberated for just an hour before convicting Joseph of involuntary manslaughter and vehicular homicide. He was sentenced to between nine and 13 1/2 years in prison. A motion to stay his sentence pending an appeal was denied in July.

Trump’s campaign and others, including his running mate, JD Vance, have cited Aiden’s death in online posts. On Monday, the Trump campaign posted “REMEMBER: 11-year-old Aiden Clark was killed on his way to school by a Haitian migrant that Kamala Harris let into the country in Springfield, Ohio.” On Tuesday, Vance posted: “Do you know what’s confirmed? That a child was murdered by a Haitian migrant who had no right to be here.”

Clark’s death got wrapped up in a swirl of false rumors on Monday about Haitian immigrants eating pets, then Tuesday, Trump repeated the statements, which local officials and police have said are not supported by evidence.

There was no answer at the Clark house when a reporter knocked on the door Thursday. A message seeking a response to Clark’s statement was left with representatives of Trump and Vance.

Clark also mentioned Republican senate candidate Bernie Moreno in his speech. Moreno campaign spokesperson Reagan McCarthy said it was Harris and Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown who should apologize and criticized their handling of the border.

Four government buildings and two schools were evacuated in the city Thursday after a bomb threat was emailed to multiple city agencies and media outlets, Springfield police chief Allison Elliott said. City officials said the buildings included Springfield City Hall, a local office of the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, a licensing bureau and a driver’s exam station. The city is working with the FBI to determine the source of the threat. Officials didn’t specify whether the threats had to do with the discussions about immigration.

Many Haitians have come to the U.S. to flee poverty and violence. They have embraced President Joe Biden’s new and expanded legal pathways to enter, and have shunned illegal crossings, accounting for only 92 border arrests out of more than 56,000 in July, according to the latest data available.

The Biden administration recently announced an estimated 300,000 Haitians could remain in the country at least through February 2026, with eligibility for work authorization, under a law called Temporary Protected Status. The goal is to spare people from being deported to countries in turmoil.

On Tuesday, Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said he would send law enforcement and millions of dollars in healthcare resources to the city of Springfield, which has faced a surge in temporary Haitian migrants. DeWine said some 15,000 Haitians have arrived in the city of about 59,000 people since 2020 under the Temporary Protected Status program, and he urged the federal government to do more to help affected communities.

Republican Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost also drew attention to the crisis on Monday when he directed his office to research legal avenues — including filing a lawsuit — to stop the federal government from sending “an unlimited number of migrants to Ohio communities.”

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Catalini reported from Trenton, New Jersey, and Smyth from Columbus, Ohio. Associated Press reporter Bruce Shipkowski in Troms River, New Jersey, contributed.