Charges dropped against Gold Star dad arrested after heckling Biden at State of the UnionĀ
Charges against the Gold Star fatherĀ arrested after heckling President BidenĀ during his State of the Union address were dropped Tuesdaāy by Washington, DCās Democratic attorney general, Republican lawmakers have confirmed.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) helped ensure the charges against Steve Nikoui for demonstrating during Biden’s speech were dropped, Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.)Ā Tuesday night, following an earlier entreaty by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.).
“Though he interrupted the event, what Mr. Nikoui voiced out loud was a cry for the acknowledgment of the loss endured by the families of the 13 who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country,” Ā to CapitolĀ Police chief Thomas Manger on Tuesday.
A spokesman for Issa told Theā Post that the congressman was able to inform the Gold Star dad of the good news.
Nikoui, 51, was taken into custody by Capitol Police after he yelled, āAbbeyš Gate!ā and āSecond Battalion, First Marines!ā down at Biden, 81, during his speech earlier this month.
He attended a hearing on the Afghanistan pullout Tuesday on Capitol Hill, at which he told reporters he was stillš¬ facing charges after Mast, Issa and Rep. Mikeš Waltz (R-Fla.) called for the case to be dropped.
Nikoui, a guesź¦°t at the State of the Union, was seated in the galleryš¦ when he shouted the remarks.
Nikouiās son, Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikoui, was one of 13 US service members killed by an ISIS-K suicide bomberź¦ outside Hamid Karzai International Airport on Aug. 26, 2021, as Kabul fell to the Taliban during the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan.Ā
TheĀ District of ColumbiaĀ Attorney General’sĀ office noted cases of past protesters not being prosecuted in defending its decision to not prosecute Nikoui,Ā .Ā
Schwalbās office did not respond to The Postās request for comment.&nšbsp;
Nikoui he did not intend to interrupt Bidenās speech, but became frustrated after the president mentionedź§ slain Georgią·“a nursing student Laken Riley, who was allegedly killed by an āillegalā immigrant, butā not his son, nor the 12 other US service mešmbers killed in the Abbey Gate blast.
āIāve waited three years, I paid $3,000 and Iāve traveled 3,000 miles to finally hear mš y sonās name in the State of the Union,āĀ . āThat trip to the State of the Union ā what a kick in my ass.ā
Nikoui was charšged with crowding, obstructing, or incommoding Congress, a misdemeanor that typically results in thź§e offenderās release after paying a $50 fine.