From the BBC:

Muntadar al-Zaidi, 29, was expected to appear in court on Wednesday charged with assaulting a foreign leader, and faced a maximum sentence of 15 years.

But after an appeal, a higher court is now deciding whether he should face the lesser charge of insulting a leader. ...

Lawyers for Mr Zaidi said their appeal was based on the fact that he had simply been expressing his opposition to the US presence in Iraq and that Mr Bush had never been in serious danger.

"Have you ever heard of anyone being killed by a shoe?" lawyer Dhiaa al-Saadi told Reuters.

"In Europe, they throw eggs and rotten tomatoes to insult. In Iraq, throwing a shoe is a symbol of disrespect."