The man who’s been arrested for hurling cans of White Claw hard seltzer at Ted Cruz during the Houston Astros World Series victory parade said he was hoping the senator would catch and “chug” the drinks, according to his lawyer.
Joey Arcidiacono, 33, was jailed Monday on a felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for throwing the beverages, but attorney Bill Stradley insisted that his client had no intent to commit an act of political violence.
“Instead, this was an Astros fan trying to toss drinks from his cooler to the Senator during a championship parade and not realizing how it would be perceived until he saw security’s reaction,” the lawyer wrote in a statement that was tweeted Wednesday.
According to Stradley, Arcidiacono texted a friend on the eve of the parade, saying: “My dream would be to throw one of the players a beer. Doubt it would happen haha but that would be epic.”
The lawyer argued that it was not uncommon for fans to throw cans to people during championship parades “to get them to chug.”
He noted that Astros pitcher Ryne Stanek “set the legendary chugging bar high that day” when he caught and downed a beer thrown to him by a fan Monday.
“That was stupid, good fun. This ended up not so fun,” Stradley wrote, referring to his client’s botched can-tossing stunt.
Arcidiacono, pictured in the foreground, right, appeared before a judge Wednesday to review his bond conditions. Verdict with Ted Cruz
Cruz joked about the seltzer-slinging on his podcast Wednesday while sipping from a White Claw can. Verdict with Ted CruzCruz was riding atop a Humvee with his family and others to celebrate the Astros’ victory over the Philadelphia Phillies when two cans of hard seltzer were hurled at him. Earlier, the two-term senator was greeted by the crowd with jeers and rude hand gestures.
One of the cans missed the Republican lawmaker, but the other struck his forearm. He did not require medical attention.
As he was being arrested, Arcidiacono told cops: “I know, I’m an idiot. I’m sorry,” according to prosecutors.
In his statement Wednesday, the seltzer-slinging suspect’s lawyer apologized on his client’s behalf to Cruz, his family and his security detail.
“We ask for grace and hope Senator Cruz declined to maintain charges,” Stradley pleaded.
Cruz, 51, joked about the can-hurling incident on his podcast Wednesday.
“I’m just grateful that the clown who threw his White Claw at me had a noodle for an arm,” Cruz quipped, after cracking open a can of White Claw and taking a sip.
“I mean, listen, if he threw a 100 mile an hour fastball, I might be in a very different condition,” he joked.
Arcidiacono has been released from jail on $40,000 bond. He is required to wear a GPS monitor and make no contact with Sen. Cruz.
