Christopher Barry rides in the Martin Luther King Jr. parade
Christopher Barry rides in the Martin Luther King Jr. parade

Update, 3:40 p.m.: Barry was released on his own recognizance today after an afternoon arraignment at D.C. Superior Court. Barry plead not guilty to all three charges he’s facing: making an attempted threat, destruction of property, and assault.

Barry is also under a stay-away order not visit the Chinatown PNC Bank or contact the teller he allegedly threatened. This standard restriction brought with it a campaign conundrum for Barry’s lawyer: what if the teller comes to one of Barry’s events? That question will have to be resolved at Barry’s next hearing on Feb. 13.

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There’s a new twist in the saga of Christopher Barry‘s attempts to replace his late father, Marion Barry, on the D.C. Council. This morning, Barry turned himself in to face charges after allegedly getting violent at a Chinatown bank branch last week.

Barry, who is currently being held in the D.C. Superior Court’s lockup, faces a misdemeanor charge for making threats, according to a warrant. But the warrant, issued yesterday, also reveals new details about the incident that allegedly involved the Ward 8 candidate destroying a security camera with a trash can. Barry’s trouble started Tuesday at the PNC Bank branch on 7th Street NW, according to the warrant. Barry allegedly tried to withdraw $20,000 from a bank account, only to be told his account was already overdrawn by $2,000. After reducing his withdrawal request to $6,000, which didn’t sway the bank’s staff, Barry allegedly threatened the teller, witnesses told police:

[Barry] became upset, began to curse and stated words to the effect of, ‘I’m going to have someone meet you when you get off; better yet I’m going around the corner and coming back.” [Witness] reported that it then advised the defendant to leave on his own or 911 would be called and he would be escorted off the premises.

This wasn’t Barry’s first run-in with the PNC Bank’s staff, according to police. Barry had already had “several hostile encounters” with them in the past, according to the report, which lists Barry as having “violent tendencies.” Barry turned to leave, only to turn around and grab a trash can, according to the warrant. He allegedly threw the trash can over the Plexiglas divider at another teller, smashing it into a wall and destroying a security camera worth more than $1,000. Security camera footage backs up the witnesses’ accounts, according to the warrant. Later that day, a teller identified Barry in a police photo line-up.

Barry’s alleged crime could affect his suspended 180 day sentence for driving on a suspended license. His probation conditions include a requirement that he not break any laws. A few days after the alleged outburst, Barry denounced accounts of it as lacking “the full facticity.” Barry declined to discuss the alleged outburst on Monday as he campaigned in Ward 8’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade, where he appeared to be one of the frontrunners for his father’s seat. This morning, he apologized to his supporters on Twitter.

[documentcloud url=”https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1506917-christopher-barry-arrest-warrant.html”]

Photo by Will Sommer