Man Who Punched Protester Turned Himself In
A Texas man who appeared in a video of him punching a political protester that went viral over social media has reportedly turned himself into authorities in Denton on Saturday.
The Daily Independent reports that 44-year-old Jason Lata of Denton got into an argument with another man over President Donald Trump at a convenience store in Denton. Lata is shown screaming at the anti-Trump protester for playing a song that he felt disrespected the President, ordering him to “Turn it off!”
Lata made threats to the man. A man who was with Lata at the time and wearing a Trump 2020 T-shirt tells the protester, “You shouldn’t even be here, bud!” Lata made additional threats to the protester before punching the man in the face just seconds later.
While Lata screamed at the man, another man pulls him away and tells him to settle down. In the video, another person at the scene can be heard saying, “Call the cops.”
Lata is then shown being led away by two other men after the incident. He was not at the scene at the time that Denton Police officers arrived.
Denton Police Chief Frank Dixon said in a statement over Twitter that detectives had identified Lata and that a warrant had been issued for his arrest. Lata reportedly turned himself in to authorities and was arrested on the charge of assault causing bodily injury and was booked into the Denton City Jail. Lata was later released on a $15,000 bond.
According to a story appearing on the Complex.com website, the victim was taken to an area hospital for treatment. He is expected to recover.
The victim has not said whether he intends to press charges against his assailant.
