HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The man who is accused of throwing two full, unopened cans of hard seltzer at Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz during the Houston Astros victory parade on Monday was in court overnight. The charge against Joseph Arcidiacono, 33, is aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
The judge set Arcidiacono’s bond at $40,000. The public defender wanted it to be $100 because she doesn’t think the cans meet the criteria for being considered a deadly weapon.
She pointed to a Texas criminal appeals case from 2003 that said a deadly weapon object had to be more than just theoretically able to kill or cause serious bodily harm. The lawyer said that Arcidiacono was about 20 feet away from Cruz and that the officer’s statements in the case don’t meet those requirements.
Still, Arcidiacono will have to follow certain rules in order to get out on bond. He can’t go within 1000 feet of Cruz’s office or home, he has to wear a GPS monitoring device, he can’t make any threats against Cruz, and he can’t use drugs, alcohol, or guns.
Along the parade route, people did meet up and celebrate, but Cruz was booed while riding on the back of a Humvee. The cans were thrown at him while he was in that car. Eyewitness News got a video of the incident, which shows that it happened in front of Spec’s Liquor Store on Smith near McIlhenny.
“During today’s victory parade, the HPD caught one person. In the 2400 block of Smith St., a man who was 33 years old threw a beer can at U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, who was on a float. The beer can hit the Senator in the area of his chest and neck.
The Senator didn’t need to see a doctor, “HPD sent tweets. “The man was taken into custody by HPD officers who were close by. He was taken to jail and is being charged with assault.”
Court records that ABC13 got late Monday night named Arcidiacono as the person who was charged with the felony count. The first shot missed Cruz, and court documents show that the second shot missed the senator’s face but hit him in the arm.
Details about what the suspect said after he was arrested were read in court “I know that I’m a fool. I apologize.” Cruz thanked law enforcement in a tweet, but he also made fun of the person who threw what Cruz confirmed was a hard seltzer.
“As always, I’m grateful for how quickly the Houston Police and Capitol Police acted. I’m also glad that the clown who threw his White Claw had a noodle for an arm “On Monday afternoon, Cruz sent out a tweet.
Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from California in Congress, spoke out against what happened. “If you disagree with someone politically, don’t throw beer at them or hurt them. We are a country where people vote and don’t fight, “Swalwell put up a tweet.
Cruz seems to be the only one who was targeted, but he wasn’t the only lawmaker who was at the parade.
The senator was in the Humvee with U.S. Reps. Sylvia Garcia and Lizzie Fletcher. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee was in the car behind Cruz’s. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was in the car in front of Cruz’s. Wednesday is when Arcidiacono is due back in court.
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