Exclusive | Armed man at Trump National Golf Club is decorated veteran with multiple tours
The armed man accused of scouting President Trump’s Southern California golf club before the commander in chief’s visit was a decorated former US Marine who completed combat deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan.Jeanine John Taele, 38, of Downey, served in the Marine Corps from March 2008 until March 2016, reaching the rank of corporal while assigned as a warehouse clerk with the elite 1st Reconnaissance Battalion at Camp Pendleton, according to military records obtained by the California Post.Taele deployed to Iraq from October 2008 through March 2009, and later served in Afghanistan from June through December 2010, records show.His military file shows he earned two Marine Corps Good Conduct Medals, awarded for repeated periods of honorable and disciplined service, along with a Navy Unit Commendation recognizing exceptional performance by his unit.He also received the National Defense Service Medal for serving during the post-Sept.11 Global War on Terror era, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Iraq Campaign Medal and Afghanistan Campaign Medal for his overseas deployments, two Sea Service Deployment Ribbons recognizing extended overseas assignments, and the NATO International Security Assistance Force Medal for supporting the alliance’s mission in Afghanistan.Taele now faces federal charges after authorities say they found him armed at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles in Rancho Palos Verdes just days before the president’s Aug.
4 fundraising visit at the location.He was charged in a federal criminal complaint with possessing an unregistered short-barreled rifle, a felony carrying a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.Agents conducting advance security planning spotted Taele on July 31 walking around the golf course and wearing an earpiece while photographing and filming security preparations, according to federal prosecutors.He allegedly returned to the club on Aug.2, where he falsely claimed he worked for the State Department on a s...