Springfield, Ohio - A non-profit group recently filed criminal charges against presidential candidate Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, for pushing a long-debunked conspiracy theory about Haitian immigrants in Ohio.

On Tuesday, The Haitian Bridge Alliance, a grassroots organization that advocates for fair and humane immigration policies, announced that they had filed charges in a Springfield municipal court regarding "the baseless and malicious comments" the two have made about the local Haitian community.

The group argued that the politicians "led an effort to vilify and threaten" the Haitian community and has asked the court to "affirm probable cause that they committed multiple crimes and issue arrest warrants" against them.

In recent weeks, Trump and Vance have aggressively pushed the unfounded claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield have been killing and eating their neighbors' pets.

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Despite the fact that numerous city officials, the city's mayor, and the state's governor have said there is "no evidence" to support the allegations, the two have insisted on pushing it anyway.

Trump and Vance have used the false Springfield story to highlight what they argue have been failed immigration policies implemented by Vice President Kamala Harris, who is running against Trump in the 2024 election.

Trump specifically has argued that immigrants are destroying the country, raping and killing US citizens, and overrunning the streets with crime.

In response, he has vowed to enact the largest deportation effort in US history if he is re-elected in November.

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Their rhetoric surrounding Springfield has led to local government buildings and schools receiving bomb threats, forcing them to close down, and local Haitian residents have reportedly faced violence and hate from their neighbors.

Guerline Jozef, the Executive Director of Haitian Bridge Alliance who brought forth the charges, said in a statement that Trump and Vance should be held "accountable for the devastating harm they caused our community" and insisted his effort is "not about one candidate or political party."

"This is about confronting white supremacy, anti-Black rhetoric, and hate speech that seems to be a constant in US politics and that continues to cause suffering," Jozef said, adding, "No one is above the law."