Ex-treasurer seeks $1M in water incident
The former Harris County treasurer has sued a man for $1 million after water was poured on his head during a news conference about HISD in December.
Orlando Sanchez, who lost his re-election campaign in November, filed suit on Thursday against Steve Striever.
Sanchez and his attorney said that Striever assaulted Sanchez by “offensive physical contact” during the news conference on Dec. 28 and that he “knew or reasonably should have believed that Orlando Sanchez would regard the contact as offensive or provocative.”
“It’s not about the physical damage; it’s about the bigger effect the damage has,” Sanchez’s attorney Hector G. Longoria said. “It’s the visceral reaction it causes.”
Striever, reached on Friday by phone, declined to comment.
Video from KHOU showed Sanchez speaking to reporters as protesters crowded around him, yelling things such as “shame.” The water was poured on the former treasurer, dripping down his face, before a man dashed off.
Sanchez held the press conference to call for the state to begin the process of taking over Houston Independent School District, he said. Sanchez directed further comment to his attorney.
“Mr. Sanchez was there talking about a very important issue about HISD and its standards and how it’s failing the minority community,” Longoria said. “I think that’s a topic that the public in general should be able to have a good debate about and not in this fashion … When does it stop?”
The $1 million includes relief for past and future mental anguish, according to the suit. The amount would ultimately be for the jury to decide, Longoria said.
Sanchez also demanded a jury trial and requested that Striever turn over material relevant to the incident, including videos, documents, texts, or phone calls about the press conference or pouring water on Sanchez’s head.