Police in Connecticut arrested Joseph Stravinskas who pulled out a rifle-like BB-gun while President Obama's motorcade passed by him, the Associated Press reported. Authorities said that Stravinskas was pacing back and forth then pulled out the gun as the motorcade went by in Bloomfrield while he was returning to Bradley International Airport. The president just gave a speech at the University of Hartford.
Stravinskas was charged with threatening, breach of peace and interfering with police, Captain Stephen Hajdasz said on Tuesday. He was expected to be arraigned later on Tuesday.
Officers noticed he acted suspiciously, and the Courant reported that a detective heard a rustling sound in a lightly wooded area where he saw the suspect aiming a rifle-like BB gun at cans.
Earlier Obama talked to the Hartford community at the university campus, underscoring the need for meaningful legislation when it comes to gun restrictions.
"If you want the people you send to Washington to have just an iota of the courage that the educators at Sandy Hook showed when danger arrived on their doorstep, then we're all going to have to stand up," the president said.
Obama's hopes for increased background checks for gun buyers and bans on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines have collided with strong opposition by the National Rifle Association. As a result, it has been a tough sale in Congress.
Some families from Newtown, where the Sandy Hook Elementary massive shooting took place in December, are in Washington lobbying senators to support gun restrictions.
In a preview of the Senate's debate this month, 13 conservative Republicans delivered a letter Monday to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. They promised to try and block lawmakers from beginning to consider the measure, a procedural move that takes 60 votes to curtail, seen as a difficulthurdle in the 100-member chamber.
The conservatives said the Democratic effort would violate the Second Amendment right to bear arms, citing "history's lesson that government cannot be in all places at all times, and history's warning about the oppression of a government that tries."
