A California congressman was charged with assault and battery following an altercation at abaggage claim area at Dulles Airport on Sunday evening.
At about 6 p.m., Democratic Rep. Bob Filner pushed aside a United Airline employee, entered a restricted area and refused to leave the baggage claim office, according to Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority spokeswoman Courtney Prebich.
Filner, 64, allegedly was upset about his luggage, officials said.
When airport police arrived several minutes later, Filner had left the office and was waiting in the baggage carousel area, Prebich said.
Police informed the seven-term congressman from San Diego that the airline employee would pursue charges. The employee appeared before a Loudoun County magistrate on Sunday night, and a summons was obtained charging Filner with assault and battery, a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $12,500 fine.
Filner is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 2.
Filner has been in trouble with the law before, during the civil rights struggle. He was arrested in 1961 in Jackson, Miss., with the Freedom Riders, and imprisoned for several months, according to his office biography. His office did not respond to requests for comments Monday.
