Tarantula-tossing Hennepin County Board candidate appears in court, hires attorney

Marisa Simonetti, the Hennepin County Board candidate who tossed a tarantula at her tenant, was in court Thursday as controversy continued around her campaign.

Dressed in black and referring to herself as the “spider queen,” Simonetti said she had a chance meeting with attorney John Daly at the Ridgedale courthouse in Minnetonka and he agreed to represent her on the misdemeanor charge of fifth-degree assault. The charge stems from a dispute Simonetti, 30, had with Jacklyn Vasquez, who was subletting the basement of her Edina home.

Daly said he wasn’t aware of the case before meeting Simonetti on Thursday when she was due to appear for a procedural hearing. Daly, whose law firm is in Lakeville, said he agreed to take the case because he believed the charge should be dropped.

“I think Ms. Simonetti deserves a good defense, and that’s what she is going to get,” Daly said about his decision to take her case. He declined to discuss the specific merits of the charge, saying he needs to review the evidence.

“I didn’t hit anyone. I didn’t do anything. I’m not guilty,” Simonetti said, describing meeting Daly as a stroke of luck. “Things always work out for me.”

Hiring a lawyer means Simonetti’s case essentially starts over. She is due back in court Oct. 17, when she said she plans to plead not guilty.

Videos posted to social media show Simonetti yelling, blaring Christian rock music and throwing toys, tacks and other items down the stairs. At one point she releases a live tarantula that Simonetti says she bought as a joke in reference to the movie “Home Alone.”

Vasquez said the incident was “deeply disturbing and deeply distressing,” and while she wasn’t physically harmed, she was “emotionally and mentally” injured.

Simonetti accused Vasquez of being a “squatter” who wouldn’t leave the home, forcing her to find an unconventional solution. Simonetti also said she believed Vasquez was trying to extort her.

Vasquez referred questions to her attorney, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Simonetti continues to embrace her new notoriety, including selling “Tarantula Tosser” T-shirts to raise money for her campaign.

She quickly posted a video on social media Thursday of her walking out of the courthouse with Daly saying he “saved the day.” She plans to tape a segment with the A&E show “My Strange Arrest” on Friday.

“We should talk about that,” Daly said when he learned of the planned taping. “Generally, I would say it is a bad idea.”

Simonetti’s altercation with Vasquez is just one of the out-of-the-ordinary things in her background.

Simonetti has refused to confirm or deny whether she works as an escort.

“All I will say on record is that if you want to find out, it would be pretty expensive to do so,” she said in a recent interview.

Previously, Simonetti released a statement saying she had to make a plan for her and her son to escape an abusive situation and she now has “considerable wealth.”

“I refuse to accept any narrative that shames or blames women for the autonomy they have over their own bodies,” her previous statement read.

Simonetti also has acknowledged being in “financial-based” relationships and said working as an escort would be better than dating, which she felt was pointless and dishonest.

She describes herself as a businesswoman who owns rental property and is the leader of Simonetti Real Estate. But her real estate license was revoked by the Minnesota Department of Commerce in 2016 for “fraudulent, deceptive and dishonest practices.”

Simonetti doesn’t think her turbulent past or recent legal issues should detract from her campaign for Hennepin County commissioner representing District 6. In April, she came in second in a six-candidate special primary for an open seat on the board and then lost the special election to former state Rep. Heather Edelson, a DFLer.

The board oversees the county’s $2.7 billion budget and 10,000 employees. Commissioners earn $122,225 annually.

District 6 has 66 precincts and includes the west metro communities of Edina, Hopkins, Mound, Minnetonka, Wayzata, Long Lake and Shorewood.

It’s a nonpartisan race, but Simonetti has campaigned as a Republican with a focus on cutting spending, improving public safety and promoting family values. Some local Republicans have pulled their support of her candidacy, and one GOP official said he regretted hosting a May fundraiser for her.

But Simonetti says voters will identify with her background and her struggles as a single mother.

“It resonates with people because we are not perfect,” she said. “We are all just doing the best we can.”

Edelson, her opponent in the November race for a four-year term on the County Board, says Simonetti’s recent behavior undercuts “the serious, meaningful work women leaders are doing here in our state and nationally and that is disappointing.”

“For decades women have fought to be at the table and be taken seriously in government and business,” Edelson said in a statement. “Her behavior is not reflective of the balanced leadership our district requires.”

Staff reporters Liz Sawyer and Paul Walsh contributed to this story.