A Mississippi man accused of destroying a statue of a pagan idol at Iowa’s state Capitol last December has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge in return for prosecutors dropping a felony hate crime count
A Mississippi man accused of destroying a statue of a pagan idol at Iowa’s state Capitol pleaded guilty Friday to a reduced charge in return for prosecutors dropping a felony hate crime count. Michael Cassidy, a former congressional and legislative candidate, was set for trial June 3, but his attorney filed a guilty plea on his behalf to an aggravated misdemeanor count of third-degree criminal mischief, the Des Moines Register reported.
“I saw this blasphemous statue and was outraged,” Cassidy told the conservative website The Sentinel in December. “My conscience is held captive to the word of God, not to bureaucratic decree. And so I acted.” Cassidy raised more than $134,000 for his defense via the Christian fundraising site GiveSendGo, where supporters said he acted with “bravery and conviction.
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