Man Who Sledgehammered Trump's Walk of Fame Star Wants You to Know He's Not Sorry

HOLLYWOOD, CA -- The vandal who wielded a sledgehammer and pickaxe destroyed Donald Trump's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the early morning hours Wednesday wants you to know he's not at all sorry.

The culprit, who identified himself as James Lambert Otis, told City News Service he originally intended to "remove" the entire star from the 6800 block of Hollywood Boulevard, auction it off in New York and give the money to the nearly dozen women who allege they were groped or sexually mistreated by Trump. But Otis said he was unable to accomplish the feat. He end up hacking out the gold-colored name and television logo from the sidewalk monument.

"It was very difficult. The stone was like marble -- hard to get through," Otis told CNS about an hour after his 5:45 a.m. attack on the star. "It would have taken an hour."

Instead, Otis, dressed in construction-worker garb, used the hammer and pick to hack away Trump's name and the logo indicating the star had been awarded in the category of television -- for Trump's work on "The Apprentice."

Otis said the process took him only a few minutes, and he still hopes he can sell the pilfered pieces.

"I'd like to try to go back and try to get the other part of the star," he said. "I just don't know how to do that yet."

Asked about his likely arrest for vandalizing the star, Otis said, "I'm not frightened of jail and I'm certainly not frightened of Mr. Trump."

"What punishment I get is fine," he said.

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Otis said he plans to eventually surrender to police, either Wednesday or Thursday, but he is still working out arrangements with his attorney. He left his tools behind at the site of the star, and they were recovered by police.

In a video posted to Deadline Hollywood, a Otis disguised as a city construction worker blocked off part of the walk before taking a sledgehammer to the star and stabbing at it with a pickaxe around 5:45 a.m. local time.

EXCLU: @realDonaldTrump #WalkOfFame star destroyed by vandal Read here: https://t.co/NqGnncyrPi pic.twitter.com/ReFkXZDIJc
— Dominic Patten (@DeadlineDominic) October 26, 2016
It's not the first time Trump's Walk of Fame star was targeted by vandals. In September, Trump's star was defaced with a large yellow "X."

Somebody put an X over Donald Trump's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. pic.twitter.com/w66R3oeWW4
— Hunter Schwarz (@hunterschwarz) September 10, 2015
"We regret that someone would deface a historic landmark," Leron Gubler, Hollywood Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, said in a statement at the time. "People who have a disagreement with Donald Trump should not take it out on the Walk of Fame. The star will be restored to its original condition as soon as possible."

In January, a Nazi swastika was spray painted over Trump's star. A mute button was painted over the star in June. And in July, a controversial street artist by the name Plastic Jesus built a miniature wall to represent Trump’s plan to build a barrier along the Mexican border.

Earlier this year, a petition to strip Trump of his star gained thousands of signatures but was ultimately rejected by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.

In the past few months, 11 women have claimed that the New York businessman groped or otherwise sexually assaulted them. For his part, Trump insists that the claims are all false and that he plans to sue them once the election is over.

Leron Gubler, president/CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, said the star will be repaired, but the process will take several days, and the star will remain covered until that time to protect it.

"The Hollywood Walk of Fame is an institution celebrating the positive contributions of the inductees," Gubler said. "When people are unhappy with one of our honorees, we would hope that they would project their anger in more positive ways than to vandalize a California state landmark. Our Democracy is based on respect for the law. People can make a difference by voting and not destroying public property."

Gubler said the chamber is working with police and intends to seek prosecution of the vandal -- something that would be done for any Walk of Fame star that is vandalized.

Ana Martinez of the chamber said replacing the star is expected to cost "a few thousand dollars." The cost of adding a brand new star to the walk -- including the sponsorship and approval process, creating the star, staging the installation ceremony and ongoing repair and maintenance -- is about $30,000, Martinez said.

Otis said he spent several nights in Hollywood preparing to carry out what he called an act of non-violent protest. He said he has been arrested about two dozen times in the past for protesting various causes.

In this case, however, he acknowledged that an act of vandalism may have crossed the line of non-violence.

"I destroyed the star, but considering the violence that has been committed (by Trump) -- I'm a little sad that I had to (damage the star)," he said. "I'm usually always non-violent. It seems in this one instance I broke some stone and marble to make a point.

I hope Mr. Trump understands that and gets the help he needs," Otis said, suggesting Trump should receive therapy for violence against women. Otis said several members of his family have been victims of sexual assault.

Trump has vehemently denied accusations of mistreating women.

Patch staffer Allen McDuffee and City News Service contributed to this report. Photo credit: mark.watmough via Wikimedia Commons