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Two Capitol police officers have been suspended as a result of their actions during the assault on the US Capitol, as pressure is increasing on law enforcement to hold rioters accountable and protect Washington DC from further violence earlier. from Joe Biden’s inauguration next week.
Tim Ryan, a Democratic senator from Ohio, told reporters Monday that one of the officers took a selfie with someone and the other donned a “Make America Great Again” cap. He says of the latter that the “interim chief determined that he qualified for immediate suspension.”
Thousands of pro-Donald Trump insurgents stormed the Capitol last Wednesday, forcing lawmakers to flee and hide. Five people were killed, including a Capitol police officer.
Several people have already been arrested in connection with the riots, including Richard Barnett, who was photographed with his feet on a desk in Nancy Pelosi’s office; Jacob Anthony Chansley, who also goes by the name Jake Angeli; Adam Christian Johnson, pictured taking the Pelosi lectern; and Derrick Evans, a newly elected legislator from West Virginia. Chansley had his first court hearing on Monday.
Ryan said Capitol police were watching everyone involved who could have facilitated the raid “on a large or small level in some way.” He said they did not want an officer working on the Joe Biden inauguration “who was not doing the work on the Jan. 6. event.”
Capitol police on Monday named Yogananda Pittman as the new acting chief of the force, which was mired in crisis over the security breach.
His appointment, which follows the resignation of former chief Steven Sund in the wake of the attack, is historic. Pittman is the first woman and the first African-American to lead the law enforcement agency, Capitol police confirmed to US public radio station NPR.
Pittman said the police department was “actively reviewing videos and other open source materials from some [Capitol] officers and officials who appear to be in violation of department regulations and policies. “
“Our office of professional responsibility will investigate these behaviors to take disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Various [Capitol] the agents have already been suspended pending the outcome of their investigations, “he said in a statement Monday night.
The events come amid growing concern over increased violence in the run-up to Biden’s inauguration on January 20. The FBI warned of planned armed protests in Washington and the 50 US state capitals. Washington DC declared a state of emergency before inauguration day, and the city’s mayor, Muriel Browser, said she is concerned about more attacks.
“If I am afraid of something, it is because of our democracy, because we have very extreme factions in our country that are armed and dangerous,” Bowser said at a news conference Monday. “Our goals at this time are to encourage Americans to participate virtually and protect the District of Columbia from a repeat of the violent insurrection experienced on the Capitol and its grounds on January 6.”
In other measures to safeguard the American capital, the National Guard was authorized to send up to 15,000 troops to Washington and tourists were prohibited from visiting the Washington Monument until January 24.
