Prosecutor says man accused of charging toward Ohio governor candidate wanted to ask questions

CANFIELD, Ohio (AP) — An armed man accused of charging toward Ohio gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton during a campaign stop at a fair was trying to ask the Democrat questions, a prosecutor said during the man's arraignment Tuesday.

No one has publicly said what 38-year-old Patrick Havas wanted to ask Acton, but authorities have said he never brandished or unholstered the weapons he had on him and they haven't found any threats in a search of his cellphone. As he charged toward Acton, authorities said, he knocked down two people before troopers stopped him.

Havas pleaded not guilty to two counts of assault, one count of disorderly conduct and one count of inducing panic. His bond was set at $5,000.

He was arrested after authorities said he knocked people down while forcing his way through a crowd Sunday as Acton spoke under a tent at the fair in Canfield in northeastern Ohio. Authorities said he had two handguns, a taser and a set of brass knuckles.

“He appeared in that tent wanting to ask questions,” Mahoning County Prosecutor Lynn Maro told the judge during the hearing. “You should know law enforcement gained consent for them to have complete access to his cellphone so they found no threats.”

Maro said after the hearing that the video Havas took shows him “walking into the tent recording and moving forward, calling out her name.” Acton, a physician, is the state’s former public health director.

“All he got out was Dr. Acton, Dr. Acton,” Maro said.

Maro said that the investigation is continuing, and noted the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office is asking the public for any video capturing what happened.

Acton’s security detail, made up of troopers with the Ohio State Highway Patrol, intercepted Havas as he forced his way through the crowd, the agency has said. A highway patrol spokesman said they did not have any bodycam footage from the incident.

Two people were treated at the scene on Sunday and released, according to an incident report from the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office.

Mike Ray, a city councilman in Youngstown who is also a member of the Ohio Democratic Party’s executive committee, said he was in a corner behind Acton as she spoke. Then, he said, he could tell that something was going on among those in the crowd facing Acton, and he saw two people who were standing in front of their mobility scooters “tumble to the ground.”

Havas’ attorney, J. Gerald Ingram, said at the hearing that his client has lived with his mother in Canfield for the past 30 years and is not a flight risk.

“He really has nowhere to go,” said Ingram, who declined to make any comments after the hearing.

The Ohio gubernatorial race is one of the most high-profile races this year as the campaigns enter the final six weeks of campaigning before the election in November. Acton is facing Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, who has parlayed his national name recognition, tech industry connections and alliance with President Donald Trump into a record fundraising haul. Ramaswamy’s campaign called the incident unacceptable.

The judge on Tuesday ordered that Havas have no contact with Acton or the two people who were knocked down, and that he forfeit any guns. He was also ordered to refrain from speaking with the media.

Addie Bullock, spokesperson for the Acton campaign, said in a statement following the hearing that Acton and her husband were “grateful to see the rule of law upheld,” and extended their “continued appreciation to law enforcement.”

Former U.S. Rep. John Boccieri, a Democratic candidate for the Ohio House, said he was near Acton in the tent when Havas “came in very aggressively” with his cellphone in the air screaming Acton’s name while rushing toward her. He said officers quickly “sprang into action,” grabbed the man and pulled him out of the tent.

Boccieri said he immediately jumped forward to make sure Acton was OK, which she was. And, he said, she’d already started helping a man who was face down in the mud after being knocked down.

Stengle contributed to this report from Dallas.