BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Sept. 20 (UPI) -- The Los Angeles County District Attorney's office declined to file a misdemeanor battery charge Friday against former astronaut Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, who allegedly struck a man in Beverly Hills earlier this month in a dispute over whether Aldrin's 1969 moonwalk was a hoax.
Aldrin, 72, was confronted on Sept. 9 by Bart Sibrel, who has been challenging the authenticity of NASA's manned moon missions, claiming that the Apollo program was a cover -- designed to trick the former Soviet Union into overestimating U.S. power during the height of the Cold War.
The Nashville-based Sibrel identifies himself as a journalist with credits including NBC, CNN, The Nashville Network (TNN), The Learning Channel (TLC) and the Discovery Channel.
He once produced a documentary called "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Moon," which purported to show a "mislabeled, unedited reel of footage ... that shows the Apollo 11 crew falsifying part of their photography" on the 1969 mission.
According to Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Ratinoff, Deputy in Charge of the Beverly Hills office, Sibrel surprised Aldrin at the Luxe Hotel on Rodeo Drive, asking him to swear on a Bible that he had been to the moon.
Sibrel called police to report the incident, but Aldrin was not there when police arrived. Sibrel told police he had videotape of the incident.
In a prepared statement Friday, Ratinoff said the videotape showed Sibrel following Aldrin on the street and "thrusting" a Bible at the retired astronaut, while others tried to "protect" Aldrin as he walked away from Sibrel. She said the video showed Aldrin punching Sibrel in the face.
"Sibrel immediately turns to the camera crew present and appears to twice state, 'Did you get that?'" said the prosecutor.
According to the release, Sibrel did not appear to be knocked down, sustained no visible injury and did not seek medical attention. Aldrin has no prior history of criminal arrest.
"Based on the totality of the circumstances," Ratinoff said, "it is unlikely a jury would find Aldrin guilty of a misdemeanor battery charge."
Aldrin became an astronaut in 1963. He and Neil Armstrong made history on July 20, 1969 by becoming the first two humans to set foot on the moon.
