Manuel Oliver, father of Parkland victim, arrested at gun hearing

The father of one of the students killed in the 2018 Parkland shooting was arrested on Capitol Hill Thursday after disrupting a hearing on gun regulations.

Manuel Oliver — who has become a vocal advocate for gun reform since the death of his 17-year-old son, Joaquin — called out Republican lawmakers at the ATF Overreach US House committee hearing.

The angry father accused the congressmen of being the “Gun Industry’s little bitches,” and for failing to curb gun violence in America, according to his Twitter.

Capitol Police said Oliver and his wife, Patricia, were removed from the hearing, but the dad rushed back in to disrupt it again, leading police to arrest him.

Video of the arrest posted by newly elected Congressman Maxwell Alejandro Frost, a Florida Democrat, shows police pinning Oliver down outside the hearing.

“Let my husband go,” Patricia could be heard yelling at the three arresting officers while Oliver tells her, “I’m OK.”


Manuel Oliver
Manuel Oliver was arrested on Capitol Hill Thursday after disrupting a hearing on gun regulations.
AP

Joaquin Oliver
Joaquin Oliver was killed in the Parkland shooting in 2018.
REUTERS

The outburst centered around the House Judiciary Committee hearing entitled: “ATF’s Assault on the Second Amendment: When is Enough Enough?,” where GOP officials condemned the ATF and Biden administration’s firearm regulations.

During the hearing, US Rep. Pat Fallon, a Texas Republican, asked a series of panelists why guns shouldn’t be banned because they are “merely a tool.”

Fallon lashed out against officers for failing to stop Oliver from interrupting the hearing when he was removed, saying: “Does the Capitol Police not do their jobs?”

The congressman also compared the outburst to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot. He asked the room: “Is this an insurrection? So will they be held to the same — I don’t want another Jan. 6, do we?”


Patricia Oliver
Patricia Oliver demanded that the police let her husband go.
AP

The comment earned him condemnation from his peers, including Frost, the first member of Gen Z to be elected to congress who ran on an anti-school shooting platform.

Along with sharing the video of the arrest, Frost wrote on Twitter: “MANNY IS A HERO. He didn’t deserve this. The Republican Chair of this committee just called him a narcissist. Disgraceful.”

Following the incident, Patricia allegedly returned to the hearing room to speak with lawmakers, who immediately asked officers to kick her out, again, Local 10 reported.


Manuel Oliver is arrested by police.
The video was posted by Rep. Maxwell Frost.
AP

Oliver is no stranger to making headlines for his confrontation of lawmakers following the death of his son and 16 others at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb.14, 2018.

Last year, the grieving father famously called out Joe Biden during a celebration on gun reform, with Oliver yelling that the president has not done enough.

It earned him criticism from Biden, who told him, “Sit down! You’ll hear what I have to say.”  

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