Man in Wizard Costume Arrested After Alleged Cane Attack on Three People

A man wearing a wizard-style hat and cape was arrested at a Texas university after allegedly attacking three people with a prop cane during a Turning Point USA event. Video of the confrontation shows him pulling down an American flag and swinging the cane before police intervene.

The incident happened on November 10 at the University of Texas at Tyler, where the conservative organization was holding a “Pick Up the Mic” gathering. Organizers said a Turning Point field representative and two students were assaulted. They reported no injuries.

“Y’all Don’t Deserve This”

In footage shared by the organizers, the man grabs an American flag from a display beside the event’s tent. “Y’all don’t deserve this,” he says, before tossing it away from the stand. People nearby confront him, and he raises his cane while shouting for them to back away.

He calls the attendees “fascist pieces of s**t” and swings the cane at one man’s legs. Another man steps in to restrain him before a campus police officer takes hold of him and begins putting him in handcuffs.

The arrest does not immediately end the argument. “Freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences,” the man declares as the officer cuffs him following the alleged assault. It is an awkward moment to make that particular point.

He later apologizes to the officer and says he had been “backed into a corner.”

UT Tyler Says the Man Wasn’t a Student

University president Julie Philley confirmed that three people were assaulted and said campus police responded immediately. She also said the man was not a UT Tyler student and had been barred from university property following his arrest.

Philley’s statement to students did not identify the man or specify the charges against him. It did, however, make the university’s position on the confrontation clear:

“Everyone has the right to free speech, and violence will not be tolerated at this university.”