A man has been arrested after pushing a park ranger into water in Austin, Texas, as he attempted to enforce social distancing measures on revelers.
The ranger, who has since been identified as Cassidy Zukeran Stillwell, was telling a group of parkgoers at Lake Austin to keep their distance amid the coronavirus pandemic when the incident occurred. The scene, which transpired on Thursday, was captured on video, and later shared to social media.
"Disperse yourselves," Stillwell can be heard saying in the video. "You're not engaging in that six feet of distance with each other."
Watch the incident unfold below:"I got you man," 25-year-old Brandon Hicks responded, per CBS Austin. "I got you." Shortly afterward, the man pushed the ranger into the water.
Hicks was later arrested on suspicion of assault on a public servant and damaging city property, including the ranger's emergency radio. According to NBC News, officials say he could have "caused the Ranger to strike his head on the dock as he was falling, and render himself unconscious in at least three feet of water where he could have drowned to death," per a police report obtained by NBC affiliate KXAN.
On Friday, the state of Texas allowed retail stores, restaurants, movie theaters, and malls to reopen in a limited capacity following a month of lockdown orders sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gov. Greg Abbot's stay-at-home order, which was issued in late March, did not prevent the public from visiting parks.
We are urging all of our readers to adhere to the advice from their respective governments and medical bodies, and practice social distancing and self-isolation where required. Together, we will beat this.<
