Man who stopped Jan. 6 protesters from heckling ex-officer Michael Fanone breaks silence
"What really motivated me was the idea that they're trying to provoke this man who is so abused and is probably going to have PTSD for the rest of his life," said Stephen Parlato.
The man at the center of last week’s ordeal between former D.C. Police Officer Michael Fanone and a group of Trump supporters is finally speaking out.
Stephen Parlato, a banner designer, was arrested and charged with simple assault after allegedly attacking a Trump supporter who was heckling Fanone on July 21 after a hearing conducted by the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Parlato told theGrio that he is “hopeful” the pending charges will be dropped.
“I think any judge — who is not of the MAGA stripe — I think will see the evidence and the witness statements that were given on the scene in my defense,” he said. “I am hoping that should lead to a dismissal of this. If not then I think I will get a lawyer.”
Last Thursday, the Jan. 6 House Select Committee held its eighth hearing where Fanone testified about the events that unfolded during the U.S. Capitol attack. According to The Associated Press, Fanone told the committee that he was called a traitor while being beaten and tased by Trump supporters during the Capitol riot.
During the hearing, Parlato was standing outside of the Cannon House Building “quietly displaying” a sign with anti-Trump rhetoric, as he wanted to share his views about former President Donald Trump.
He told theGrio that he witnessed protestors heckling Fanone as the former officer was exiting the building later in the evening.
Parlato said earlier that night, the same group of “young MAGA” protesters had been pestering others, but things took a turn for the worse when they spotted Fanone.
“This sort of built to a crescendo when they saw Officer Fanone step out of the meeting, and they were like a pack of rabid dogs going after him and saying very provocative conspiracy type comments about, are you a real policeman? Were you even supposed to be there on that day? Are you an FBI agent? Are you Antifa?” he recalled.
He added, “They were chasing him down to the point where he had to turn around and walk the other way just to try and get away from them. Here he is, one of the most brutally attacked and abused victims of the Capitol riot.”
Parlato said at one point he could no longer stand back and watch Fanone be harassed, so he decided to take action.
“There was a gap between him and his pursuers and just sort of step in between to stop them from harassing him and to give him some space to continue without this abuse,” he explained. “And then one of the harassers threw himself on the ground and began screaming and crying out like he had been attacked.”
Parlato told theGrio that he believes the protesters were only “sent to this scene to provoke.”
“I think that’s what really motivated me … the idea that they’re trying to provoke this man who is so abused and is probably going to have PTSD for the rest of his life. They’re trying to provoke him into a confrontation, and it just infuriated me.”
Parlato was arrested following the incident and was released from police custody shortly after.
Stephen told theGrio that over the last six years he has “donated a large part of time and finances towards voicing concerns” about the former president. He added that he will not let the ordeal deter him from pursuing what he believes is right.
“There’s no way I’m going to be bullied or hoodwinked into feeling that I can’t express my views here. This is a nation in peril,” he expressed. “There’s no way that I can look myself in the mirror in the morning without knowing that I’m doing everything that I possibly can.”
Parlato’s next hearing is scheduled for Aug. 24.
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