DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The City of Daytona Beach agreed to a hefty settlement with the guitarist best known for wearing his tighty-whities in the streets with a guitar strapped around his neck after he was arrested during the 2021 weeklong Daytona Beach Bike Week.
The city agreed to a payout of $90,000 to Robert Burck, also known as the "Naked Cowboy," following Burck's claims against the city and the arresting officers for false arrest, excessive force and property damage, in addition to challenging the constitutionality of Daytona Beach's panhandling ordinance, records show.
The claims stem from an arrest on March 6, 2021. Burck was in town for the weeklong Daytona Beach Bike Week when he was charged with resisting an officer without violence and aggressive panhandling, according to jail records.
Burck on March 3, 2022, filed the complaint and alleged the ordinance was unconstitutional under the Federal and State constitutions, and that it violated his Fourth Amendment right.
The 50-year-old known for wearing his cowboy attire, or lack there of, in New York City's Time Square later offered to settle his claims against the city and officers for $90,000. City commissioners voted 7-0 to go forward with the proposal on Wednesday, July 20, WKMG-TV reports.
