Two Capitol police officers were suspended as a result of their actions during the attack on the US Capitol, as pressure on law enforcement to hold protesters to account and protect Washington DC from further violence before Joe Biden’s inauguration increases next week .
Tim Ryan, a Democratic senator from Ohio, told reporters on Monday that one of the officers took a selfie with someone and the other put on a “Make America Great Again” cap. He says of the latter that the “interim chief has determined that he qualifies for immediate suspension”.
Thousands of pro-Donald Trump rebels stormed the Capitol last Wednesday, forcing lawmakers to flee and hide. Five people died, including a Capitol police officer.
Several people have already been arrested in connection with the riot, including Richard Barnett, who was photographed with his feet up on a table in Nancy Pelosi’s office; Jacob Anthony Chansley, who also goes by the name of Jake Angeli; Adam Christian Johnson, who was photographed carrying Pelosi’s pulpit; and Derrick Evans, a recently elected West Virginia lawmaker. Chansley had its first hearing on Monday.
Ryan said the Capitol police were looking for everyone involved who could have facilitated the raid “on a large or small level anyway”. He said that they did not want an officer working in the possession of Joe Biden “who was not doing the job at the January 6 event”.
The Capitol police force on Monday named Yogananda Pittman as the new interim chief of the force, who went into crisis because of the security breach.
His appointment, which follows the resignation of former chief Steven Sund after the attack, is historic. Pittman is the first woman and the first black American woman to lead the police agency, the Capitol police confirmed to the American public radio network NPR.
Pittman said the police department was “actively reviewing videos and other open source material from some [Capitol] officers and employees who appear to be violating department regulations and policies. “
“Our professional liability office will investigate these behaviors for disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Of several [Capitol] police have already been suspended pending the outcome of their investigations, ”she said in a statement late on Monday.
The developments come amid growing concerns about more violence in the race for Biden’s inauguration on January 20. The FBI has warned of planned armed protests in Washington and in all 50 US capitals. Washington DC declared a state of emergency before the inauguration day, with city mayor Muriel Browser, saying she is concerned about further attacks.
“If I’m afraid of anything, it’s because of our democracy, because we have very extremist factions in our country that are armed and are dangerous,” Bowser said at a news conference on Monday. “Our goals now are to encourage Americans to participate virtually and protect the District of Columbia from a repeat of the violent uprising experienced on the Capitol and its grounds on January 6.”
In other measures to protect the capital of the United States, the national guard was authorized to send up to 15,000 troops to Washington, and tourists were prevented from visiting the Washington Monument until January 24.