A Christian and former U.S. military soldier named Michael Cassidy is charged with hate crimes for damaging a monument of Satanic Baphomet located in the Iowa Capitol.
Following state laws allowing religious displays, the Satanic Temple of Iowa positioned the statue as a part of a Christmas display at the Iowa Capitol. Governor Kim Reynolds of Iowa and other elected Republicans criticized the statue, but state legislators allowed it to stay because they believed it protected religious freedom.
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The statue was “destroyed beyond repair” and had been beheaded, according to a report released by the Satanic Temple on December 14.
Cassidy was charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief the next day, which is a misdemeanor. U.S. Representative Michael Guest (R-MS) defeated Cassidy in a primary election in 2022, and Cassidy informed The Sentinel that his “conscience is held captive to the word of God, not to bureaucratic decree. And so I acted.”
Prosecutors in Polk County enhanced the veteran’s accusations against Christianity on Tuesday. The additional charges specifically state that the act was done “in violation of individual rights” as defined by Iowa’s hate crime statute, and they involve felony third-degree criminal mischief.
“Evidence shows the defendant made statements to law enforcement and the public indicating he destroyed the property because of the victim’s religion,” causing the strengthening of individual rights to be violated, according to Polk County Attorney’s Office spokesperson Lynn Hicks.
Cassidy’s lawyer, Sara Pasquale, has charged the Satanic Temple of filing documents too soon, claiming that, “like the timing and substance of the Satanic Temple of Iowa’s installation of a demonic statue in the capitol building… are only meant to evoke strong emotions and incite others.”
According to court documents, Cassidy’s arraignment is scheduled on February 15. His legal defense on GiveSendGo had already raised more than $80,000 before the latest allegations were made public.
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“The world may tell Christians to submissively accept the legitimization of Satan, but none of the founders would have considered government sanction of Satanic altars inside Capitol buildings as protected by the First Amendment,” Shortly after the event, Cassidy informed Human Events.
