Nugent, an opponent of animal rights, said in a long interview, "I'm stymied to come up with anything funnier than people who think animals have rights. Just stick an arrow through their lungs." In 2000, Bhaskar Sinha was jailed briefly following an incident outside a department store in San Francisco in which he threatened and physically assaulted Nugent, who in turn took Sinha into custody until San Francisco Police arrived and arrested the protester. However, protesters claim that Nugent started the altercation by spitting in the face of one of the protesters when offered an anti-fur flyer. A San Francisco police officer, who stated that he was on the scene, said that he didn't believe Nugent spat on anyone.