Several U.S. Capitol Police officers could face disciplinary actions after the USCP made the recommendation in six cases following an internal review of officer behavior during the U.S. Capitol attack on Jan. 6. None of them will face criminal charges.
According to a statement from the USCP, the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility opened 38 internal investigations and identified 26 officers whose conduct during the attack carried out by supporters of former President Donald Trump came into question.
The statement noted that “some complaints did not contain enough information to identify the officer at the center of the complaint.” Still, in 20 of the cases discovered, no wrongdoing was found.
Of the other six, the release stated, “violations were sustained and disciplinary action was recommended,” including three for “conduct unbecoming, one for failure to comply with directives, one for improper remarks and one for improper dissemination of information.”
The name of the officer(s) involved and the details regarding the incidents were not made public because “internal investigations, including any recommended disciplinary actions, as well as personnel matters are not public information,” the department said.
The statement concluded, stating that the “six sustained cases should not diminish the heroic efforts of the United States Capitol police officers.” But, it added, that “On January 6, the bravery and courage exhibited by the vast majority of our employees was inspiring.”
Six officers were suspended with pay while another 29 were investigated. However, it’s still unclear whether they were the same officers mentioned in the press release.
John Stolnis, a spokesperson for the USCP, told the outlet that the acting chief of the Capitol Police, Yogananda Pittman, that “any member of her department whose behavior is not in keeping with the department’s rules of conduct” can expect to be disciplined.
As previously reported, on Jan. 6, a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to stop lawmakers from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election, which reality star-turned-politician Trump claimed was “stolen by emboldened radical-left Democrats.”
In the aftermath of the event, which lasted for several hours, five people died, hundreds were injured — including 138 officers — and four Capitol officers have since died by suicide.
Rioters also left behind $30 million worth of damages. Federal prosecutors have charged more than 500 people in more than 40 states in connection with the riot, and arrests continue almost daily.
