DES MOINES, Iowa — A Mississippi man accused of vandalizing a statue of a pagan idol in the Iowa Capitol has now been charged with a hate crime.
The statue was brought to the Capitol by the Satanic Temple of Iowa under state rules allowing religious displays in the building during the holidays. The move drew strong criticism from state and national leaders, including Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and Florida Governor and presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, both Republicans. On December 14, the figure depicting the horned deity Baphomet was “destroyed beyond repair,” the group said.
Michael Cassidy, a former congressional and legislative candidate from Mississippi, was charged the next day with fourth-degree criminal mischief, a misdemeanor. He told the conservative website The Sentinel that “my conscience is held captive by the word of God, not by bureaucratic decisions. And so I acted.”
Now, Polk County prosecutors have charged Cassidy with a more serious crime, the Des Moines Register reports. A document made public Tuesday charged him with third-degree criminal mischief. It claims the act was committed “in violation of individual rights” under the Iowa hate crimes statute.
“Evidence shows that the suspect made statements to police and the public indicating that he destroyed the property because of the victim’s religion,” Lynn Hicks, a spokesperson for the Polk County Prosecutor’s Office, said in a statement .
Cassidy’s attorney, Sara Pasquale, declined to comment on the new charges. In previous lawsuits, she has accused the Satanic Temple of filing reports that are “only intended to evoke strong emotions and incite others.”
Cassidy will be arraigned on February 15. He has raised more than $84,000 for his defense from nearly 2,000 supporters, according to the fundraising site GiveSendGo.
The Salem, Massachusetts-based Satanic Temple, founded in 2013, says it does not believe in Satan but describes itself as a “non-theistic religious organization” that advocates secularism. It is separate from the Church of Satan, which was founded in the 1960s.