A man charged with assault for allegedly driving toward U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris and her campaign supporters did not know the former Florida secretary of state was in the group, his attorney said.
| Then who was he intimidating? |
Barry Seltzer, 46, was being held at Sarasota County Jail on $500,000 bail until at least Monday, when his lawyers said they would try to get his bond lowered. Seltzer told police he was exercising "political expression" when he aimed his car at Harris and a group of backers on Tuesday. He swerved onto the sidewalk; no one was hurt. "From our investigation, it appears that our client did not know that she was even there," said attorney David Haenel.
Seltzer acknowledged to police that he "intimidated them with my car," and added, "I scared them a little." Harris, a Sarasota Republican who is nationally known for her pivotal role in the 2000 presidential election, told police she feared for her life and couldn't move as the vehicle sped toward her. She won a seat in Congress in 2002 and faces Jan Schneider, who lost to Harris two years ago, in her re-election campaign. |