Wild video captured an armed Maine dad’s unhinged rant against abortion and gay rights during a standoff with police — moments before he was shot dead by a SWAT team.
Steven Righini, 29, posted a video of himself on X ranting while holding a gun during a standoff with police Monday at his home in Portage Lake, a northern Maine town of about 400 people, local outlet WMTW reported.
“My name is Steven Righini. I am a resident of Maine, and I had the cops called on me. A SWAT team showed up, and I am now engaged in a shootout,” Righini said in the video.
“My state has been the number one abortion and gay rights state in the entire country and I’ve been segregated against for my beliefs. Now they’re trying to arrest me simply because I do not believe in gay rights and abortion,” he continued.
Righini accused Maine of becoming an “abortion mill” and railed against authorities for “protecting the rights of doctors to murder babies.”
“I’m here with my baby daughter, who they are also trying to take away. I assure you, I am not the aggressor here,” Righini rambles on while brandishing his gun.
Authorities responded to Righini’s home after his 18-year-old wife told police he had been fighting with her and pushed her into a wall. By the time cops arrived, his wife was out of the house while Righini was still inside with their four-week-old daughter, the outlet reported.
Righini resisted arrest and a struggle broke out. He then pulled a gun out of his waistband and shot at officers as he retreated into his home, authorities said.
He continued firing as officers attempted to back away, his gunfire striking Aroostook County Sheriff’s Deputy Shane Campbell in the shoulder. Campbell was taken to the hospital, where he was treated and released.
Negotiations between Righini and law enforcement lasted several hours until he attempted to flee the home, only to find authorities had disabled his car, prompting him to try to run away on foot.
Police then sent a K-9 named Preacher to apprehend Righini, who shot the dog in the abdomen.
Two state police troopers then returned fire at Righini, who was killed in the melee, authorities said.
Meanwhile, K-9 Preacher was rushed to an emergency veterinary clinic and ultimately died from his injuries on Tuesday.
Tracy Wadsworth, a clerk at the general store just across the street from the deadly standoff, said she spoke with Righini’s wife the next day.
“She said: ‘That’s not him,’” Wadsworth told the outlet. “She said he was having some sort of mental breakdown. She talked to him throughout the day and tried to get him to surrender, turn himself in, and he said he couldn’t do it.”
Righini’s infant daughter was not injured in the standoff, authorities said. She has since been reunited with her mother.
