Pittsburgh Police Chief Scirotto shares his side of story after local activist arrested at parade

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh police chief is sharing his side of the story after a local activist was arrested at the Juneteenth parade over the weekend.

RELATED >>> Pittsburgh activist facing charges after shoving officer, yelling at Mayor Gainey during parade

Pittsburgh Police Chief Larry Scirotto was seen in a video Saturday assisting officers as they took Parker into custody.

Parker has denied any wrongdoing but Scirotto says he saw Parker cross the line.

RELATED >>> Local activist arrested at parade shares his side of story, witness recalls details from the arrest

Parker claims he didn’t shove anyone and he says the chief ordered his arrest, even as he claims Mayor Gainey told people to ignore him.

Earle: He says you ordered his arrest. Did you order his arrest?

Scirotto: I did not order it. When he made ... it was very natural, when he made contact with the officer, the officer responded. When he elbowed the officer in the chest the officer responded and I assisted in taking him into custody.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> Pittsburgh activist arrested at Juneteenth parade says video will prove his innocence

Parker, a frequent protester and critic of Mayor Gainey, claims he was rolling on his cell phone the entire time and he says the video will prove his innocence.

He’s declined to release it, saying he’s saving it for court

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

©2023 Cox Media Group