(NationRise.com) – Prosecutors have dropped charges against Steve Nikoui, the father of a fallen Marine who disrupted President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address.
Nikoui received a Gold Star after his son, Kareem, was killed while serving in Afghanistan on August 26, 2021. He was in the Hamid Karzai airport when an Islamic terrorist detonated a bomb as American military personnel were pulling out under Biden’s orders. Nearly 200 people were killed, including 13 service members from the US.
Nikoui said he blamed Biden for the incident during an interview with Sean Hannity at Fox News. He referred to the president as a “bumper car” that damages everything he touches, leaving Americans to clean up the mess. He also blamed Biden for the death of Dakota James Halverson, Kareem’s half-brother. Halverson killed himself after grieving the loss of his brother. Nikoui also called on the American people to hold the Biden administration accountable before more people die. He and other Gold Star families have also said that their demands for answers and accountability have largely been ignored.
US Capitol police arrested Nikoui shortly after he disrupted the speech by yelling “Abbey Gate” in reference to the airport’s entrance. He attended the speech after an invitation from Representative Brian Mast (R-FL). The 51-year-old faced charges of crowding and obstructing. Police claimed that demonstrations are outlawed in the Capitol building. They also said he was warned to stop before the arrest. If convicted, he could have faced a $500 fine and a sentence of 90 days.
Mast blasted the Sergeant at Arms for detaining his guest, saying it undermined the Constitutional right to protest. He also empathized with Nikoui’s loss while referencing “Biden’s incompetence.”
However, the charges were dropped after Brian Schawlb, the attorney general in Washington, DC, said that similar cases have set a precedent that he was unlikely to be convicted. Mast and a few other Republican representatives also requested that the charges be dropped.
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