Danny Presti, co-owner of Mac’s Public House in New York City, was not charged by a grand jury after being filmed running down a sheriff’s deputy with a minivan on December 6, 2020.
The deputy was trying to arrest Presti outside his bar for defying city and state COVID-19 restrictions, according to Advance/SILive.com.
Presti’s lawyers claimed that Presti didn’t know the man whom he ran over was a police officer.
Presti has become a local hero for defying COVID-19 safety rules while the city is overrun with infections and deaths.
Prosecutors wanted Presti charged with second degree assault causing physical injury to an officer, reckless endangerment, and reckless driving for the incident.
Presti was only charged with two misdemeanors for allegedly selling alcohol inside the bar without a license, reports Gothamist:
The State Liquor Authority had suspended Mac’s Public House’s liquor license in late November after the bar was caught serving customers in defiance of the state’s COVID-19 orange zone restrictions, which prohibited indoor dining and drinking due to the high rates of COVID-19 in the area.
Presti was arrested on December 1st for continuing to welcome customers inside and openly flouting the restrictions. Protests outside the bar ensued, with the crowd—which included Proud Boys and some Republican officials—condemning what they said were overly restrictive laws put in place in response to the pandemic.
