Man shoots movie viewer who pushed his 'Button'

Christmas Day is supposed to be filled with love and warmth from family and friends, meant to last throughout the next year.

That warmth didn't even last a full 24 hours for James Joseph Cialella Jr., of South Philadelphia, who police said shot a man at a movie theater Thursday night because the man wouldn't be quiet during a showing of "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."

After the shooting incident, Cialella was arrested and charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault, weapons offenses and related charges for the crime, police said.

Cops were called to the United Artists Riverview Plaza 17 movie theater, on Columbus Boulevard near Reed Street in Pennsport, to respond to a 9-1-1 call reporting a person with a gun.

The 31-year-old victim, a Yeadon man whom police declined to identify, told investigators that he was watching a movie with his family when Cialella told them to be quiet and threw popcorn at the victim's son.

Cialella and the victim started yelling at each other, then Cialella allegedly got out of his seat and shot the man once in the left arm with a .380-caliber handgun that he under his waistband when he entered the theater, police said.

The victim remained in stable condition last night at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital , according to investigators.

No one else was injured in the incident, police said.

"It's a tragedy that you can't even go to a movie theater without having to deal with gun violence," said Sgt. Ray Evers, a police spokesman.

"And it's an even bigger tragedy that people can't handle disputes without involving a firearm." *