Name: Man accused in altercation with Bexar County judge says judge was in the wrong
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Man accused in altercation with Bexar County judge says judge was in the wrong

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The man who got into an altercation with Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff in a checkout line over the order requiring masks in stores said through his lawyer that Wolff was the aggressor and that he never assaulted him.Terry Toller, 47, turned himself in to authorities early Thursday. The charge against him was reduced from assault on a public servant, a felony, to disorderly conduct, a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $500 upon conviction. Toller was given a citation and released.His lawyer, former Bexar County District Attorney Nico LaHood, said he would contest the misdemeanor charge.“I think this is a situation of overreaching, for sure,” LaHood said.On ExpressNews.com:Toller and Wolff, 79, encountered one another Wednesday at a Lowe’s home improvement store at Callahan and Interstate 10.Wolff signed an order last week mandating that Bexar County businesses require customers and employees to wear masks. Toller was not wearing one.Toller runs Cambridge Auto Center at 9823 Fredericksburg Road, near the Lowe’s, and appears on a Saturday afternoon radio show on WOAI Radio called “Under the Hood.”On security video, Toller is seen emptying his shopping cart at a cashier’s station while Wolff, his face wrapped in a bandanna, enters an adjacent checkout line. Wolff approaches Toller and offers his business card. Toller turns and appears to knock the card from the judge’s hand.The incident encapsulated the controversy in San Antonio and across Texas over whether governments have the right to require masks in public places to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.Wolff, Mayor Ron Nirenberg and public health officials have said masks are the essential to tame the pandemic and save livesBut some Texans have bridled at mask rules as an infringement on personal freedom. Gov. Greg Abbott, while recommending people voluntarily wear masks in public, has refused to make it mandatory. Abbott also has barred local governments from requiring individuals to wear masks.On ExpressNews.com:That’s why .County officials said that in the Lowe’s store Wednesday, Toller grew angry when an employee told him customers had to wear masks. Wolff tried to calm Toller and offer him a business card so the two could discuss the matter later by phone, officials said.LaHood disputed that narrative. He denied that Toller was verbally abusive toward the cashier.LaHood said Wolff had initiated contact with Toller earlier over his failure to wear a mask and then approached Toller a second time in the checkout area.Toller was trying to pay and leave the store when Wolff “put a card in his face,” LaHood said.On the security video, Toller is seen shifting a long tool handle from his right hand to his left, then extending his right hand toward Wolff.Because of the camera angle, it’s difficult to discern whether Toller’s hand made contact with Wolff’s or whether Toller simply swiped the card out of the judge’s hand.On ExpressNews.com:“Mr. Toller, bottom line, has always said that he did nothing wrong,” LaHood said. “He was having a very normal, professional conversation, to our understanding, with the young lady that was helping him check out. He’s handing his stuff over. His basket is full of products. And he’s just trying to check out and pay money for products and leave. That’s when Judge Wolff approached him.”LaHood acknowledged Toller was not wearing a mask but said that wasn’t relevant to the case.“His point was, ‘I never assaulted this guy. I didn’t go up to him. He came up to me, and I was just trying to buy some products,’” LaHood said.District Attorney Joe Gonzales said the felony charge against Toller “was rejected at magistration” at Wolff’s request.The remaining disorderly conduct charge was “for using profanity in a public place,” the district attorney said.Gonzales made a point of saying that wearing a mask, scarf or other face covering “is a sign of respect to the people around you.”“While this issue has become divisive and political, it is my hope that everyone will follow the order voluntarily,” he said.Wolff declined to be interviewed about the incident. In a statement, he said he told Gonzales he didn’t want to pursue “any sort of criminal complaint against Mr. Toller.”“I did not want this to be a distraction of our main focus of requiring businesses to have customers wear masks and continuing to ensure the health and safety of everyone in our community,” Wolff said. “We are experiencing a drastic rise in cases and hospitalizations. …We do not need any distractions from our mission to make sure this virus does not continue to spread within our community.”Scott Huddleston covers Bexar County government and the Alamo for the San Antonio Express-News. To read more from Scott, . | Twitter:

The man who got into an altercation with Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff in a checkout line over the order requiring masks in stores said through his lawyer that Wolff was the aggressor and that he never assaulted him.Terry Toller, 47, turned himself in to authorities early Thursday. The charge against him was reduced from assault on a public servant, a felony, to disorderly conduct, a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $500 upon conviction. Toller was given a citation and released.His lawyer, former Bexar County District Attorney Nico LaHood, said he would contest the...

Man accused in altercation with Bexar County judge says judge was in the wrong

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