Michael Fanone | |
---|---|
Born | Washington, D.C., U.S. | September 3, 1980
Alma mater | Ballou High School |
Known for | Police officer during the January 6 United States Capitol attack |
Police career | |
Country | United States of America |
Allegiance | District of Columbia |
Department | United States Capitol Police Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia |
Service years | 2001–2021 |
Status | Retired |
Rank | Sworn in as an officer (2001) |
Awards | Presidential Citizens Medal (2023) |
Other work |
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Michael Fanone (born September 3, 1980) is an American law enforcement analyst, author, and retired police officer. He worked for the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia from 2001 until his retirement in 2021. Fanone was one of many victims of the January 6 United States Capitol attack, and testified with his colleagues in front of the House Select Committee investigating the attack in 2021. He is currently a CNN on-air contributor.
Fanone was born on September 3, 1980, and raised in Alexandria, Virginia. [1] His mother, Terry Fanone, is a social worker and his father is a lawyer at a large law firm. They divorced when he was eight years old. His mother came from a working-class family in rural Maryland. Fanone attended St. Mary's Elementary School, and Georgetown Preparatory School for a year. He then attended boarding school in Maine. He left to work in construction and graduated from Ballou High School. [1]
Fanone joined the United States Capitol Police during the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. [1] A few years later, he joined the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, remaining a member for approximately 20 years. He worked primarily as a plain-clothes and undercover officer, investigating narcotics trafficking. [1]
During the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol Fanone, who did not go on duty until the afternoon, self-deployed in response to radio calls for assistance. He was assaulted by rioters—dragged down the Capitol steps, beaten with pipes, stunned with a Taser, sprayed with chemical irritants, and threatened with his own gun. Fanone suffered burns, a heart attack, a concussion, a traumatic brain injury, and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the attack. [2] [3] [4]
Alongside fellow officers Harry Dunn, Aquilino Gonell, and Daniel Hodges, Fanone testified before the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack, in which he discussed his experiences with rioters that afternoon. [1] In the testimony, Fanone noted:
At some point during the fighting, I was dragged from the line of officers and into the crowd. I heard someone scream—"I got one!". As I was swarmed by a violent mob, they ripped off my badge. They grabbed and stripped me of my radio. They seized ammunition that was secured to my body. They began to beat me with their fists, and what felt like hard metal objects. At one point, I came face-to-face with an attacker, who repeatedly lunged for me and attempted to remove my firearm. I heard chanting from some in the crowd—"Get his gun!" and "Kill him with his own gun!" [5]
In June 2021, Fanone asked Kevin McCarthy and other Republicans in Congress to denounce the January 6 conspiracies. [6] Due to physical and emotional injuries, he returned to limited duty in September 2021, [7] working in the technical and analytical services bureau. [7] In October 2021, one of the men charged with assaulting Fanone was released from jail and put under house arrest. [8] After submitting his resignation, Fanone's last day on duty was December 31, 2021. [9]
Fanone joined CNN in January 2022 as an on-air contributor and law enforcement analyst. [10] [11] [12]
Ahead of the second anniversary of the January 6 United States Capitol attack, Fanone wrote a letter, signed by more than 1,000 veterans, law enforcement, active military members and family, calling on Republican leadership in the United States House of Representatives to denounce political violence. The letter was hand delivered by military veterans to top Republican leaders, and Fanone delivered a copy of the letter to the office of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. [13] Fanone and dozens of military veterans, including House members Reps. Jason Crow, Chrissy Houlahan, Mikie Sherrill, and Chris Deluzio, also spoke at a rally in front of the United States Capitol, which was organized by the groups Courage for America and Common Defense. [14] [15]
On January 6, 2023, Fanone was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Joe Biden. [16]
On June 21, 2023, Daniel Rodriguez, one of the men who attacked Fanone with a stun gun on January 6, 2021, was sentenced to 12 and a half years in federal prison by Judge Amy Berman Jackson. [17]
Fanone is divorced and has four daughters. [1] While he remained estranged from his ex-wife until the January 6 attack, after the attack he described her as "a pretty integral part of [his] support system". [18]
He lives in Virginia with his mother. Fanone was formerly a supporter of Donald Trump and voted for him in the 2016 United States presidential election, [4] but stopped supporting him after his dismissal of James Comey and after comments he made that he perceived to be anti-Asian. [18]
In August 2023, Fanone wrote a CNN op-ed in which he called for a ban on the AR-15. [19]
Oath Keepers is an American far-right anti-government militia whose leaders have been convicted of violently opposing the government of the United States, including the transfer of presidential power as prescribed by the United States constitution. It was incorporated in 2009 by founder Elmer Stewart Rhodes, a lawyer and former paratrooper. In 2023, Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years for seditious conspiracy for his role in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, and another Oath Keepers leader, Kelly Meggs, was sentenced to 12 years for the same crime. Three other members have pleaded guilty to this crime, and four other members have been convicted of it.
Steven A. Sund is a retired American police officer who served as the tenth chief of the United States Capitol Police from 2019 to 2021. Sund was chief during the January 6 United States Capitol attack, after which he resigned.
Andrew Scott Clyde is an American politician and gun store owner from the state of Georgia. A Republican, Clyde represents Georgia's 9th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives, assuming office in 2021. The district serves a large swath of exurban and rural territory north of Atlanta, including Gainesville, Toccoa, Hartwell and Dahlonega.
Joseph Randall Biggs is an American veteran, media personality, organizer of the Proud Boys, and convicted felon for his participation in the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of then-U.S. president Donald Trump, two months after his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. They sought to keep Trump in power by occupying the Capitol and preventing a joint session of Congress counting the Electoral College votes to formalize the victory of President-elect Joe Biden. The attack was ultimately unsuccessful in preventing the certification of the election results. According to the House select committee investigating the incident, the attack was the culmination of a seven-part plan by Trump to overturn the election.
On January 6, 2021, Ashli Babbitt was fatally shot during an attack on the United States Capitol. She was part of a crowd of supporters of then U.S. president Donald Trump who breached the United States Capitol building seeking to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.
On January 7, 2021, a United States Capitol Police (USCP) officer, Brian Sicknick, died after suffering two strokes the day after he responded to an attack on the U.S. Capitol. The District of Columbia chief medical examiner found that Sicknick had died from stroke, classifying his death as natural and additionally commented that "all that transpired played a role in his condition", a decision which was criticized by some expert neurologists, who have stated that stress from the attack may have very well caused the stroke. His cremated remains were laid in honor in the Capitol Rotunda on February 2, 2021, before they were buried with full honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
The following article is a broad timeline of the course of events surrounding the attack on the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, by rioters supporting United States President Donald Trump's attempts to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. Pro-Trump rioters stormed the United States Capitol after assembling on the Ellipse of the Capitol complex for a rally headlined as the "Save America March".
In the aftermath of the January 6 United States Capitol attack, after drawing widespread condemnation from the U.S. Congress, members of his administration, and the media, 45th U.S. President Donald Trump released a video-taped statement on January 7 to stop the resignations of his staff and the threats of impeachment or removal from office. In the statement, he condemned the violence at the U.S. Capitol, saying that "a new administration will be inaugurated", which was widely seen as a concession, and his "focus now turns to ensuring a smooth, orderly, and seamless transition of power" to the Joe Biden administration. Vanity Fair reported that Trump was at least partially convinced to make the statement by U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who told Trump a sufficient number of Senate Republicans would support removing him from office unless he conceded. Kayleigh McEnany, the White House Press Secretary, had attempted to distance the administration from the rioters' behavior in a televised statement earlier in the day. On January 9, The New York Times reported that Trump had told White House aides he regretted committing to an orderly transition of power and would never resign from office. In a March 25 interview on Fox News, Trump defended the Capitol attackers, saying they were patriots who posed "zero threat", and he criticized law enforcement for "persecuting" the rioters.
The January 6 United States Capitol attack was followed by political, legal, and social repercussions. The second impeachment of Donald Trump, who was charged for incitement of insurrection for his conduct, occurred on January 13. At the same time, Cabinet officials were pressured to invoke the 25th Amendment for removing Trump from office. Trump was subsequently acquitted in the Senate trial, which was held in February after Trump had already left office. The result was a 57–43 vote in favor of conviction, with every Democrat and seven Republicans voting to convict, but two-thirds of the Senate are required to convict. Many in the Trump administration resigned. Several large companies announced they were halting all political donations, and others have suspended funding the lawmakers who had objected to certifying Electoral College results. A bill was introduced to form an independent commission, similar to the 9/11 Commission, to investigate the events surrounding the attack; it passed the House but was blocked by Republicans in the Senate. The House then approved a House "select committee" to investigate the attack. In June, the Senate released the results of its own investigation of the attack. The event led to strong criticism of law enforcement agencies. Leading figures within the United States Capitol Police resigned. A large-scale criminal investigation was undertaken, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) opening more than 1,200 case files. Federal law enforcement undertook a nationwide manhunt for the perpetrators, with arrests and indictments following within days. Over 890 people had been found guilty of federal crimes.
Dominic Pezzola is an American convicted felon and member of the Proud Boys who participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack, a violent attack at the U.S. Capitol. He is best known for stealing a police riot shield and using it to break a Capitol window on January 6, 2021, making him the first rioter to breach the building. Indicted in 2021, on federal charges, he was tried in 2023 alongside Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and his key lieutenants, Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, and Zachary Rehl. In May 2023, following a five-month jury trial, Pezzola was convicted of obstructing a congressional proceeding, assaulting a police officer, and other crimes. He was acquitted of seditious conspiracy, the most serious charge. The jury deadlocked on other charges against Pezzola, including conspiring to obstruct the counting of the electoral votes.
On January 6, 2021, supporters of then President Donald Trump attacked the U.S. Capitol Building, disrupting the joint session of Congress assembled to count electoral votes to formalize Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 United States Presidential Election. By the end of the month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had opened more than 400 case files and issued more than 500 subpoenas and search warrants related to the riot. The FBI also created a website to solicit tips from the public specifically related to the riot and were especially assisted by the crowdsourced sleuthing group Sedition Hunters. By the end of 2021, 725 people had been charged with federal crimes. That number rose to 1,000 by the second anniversary of the attack, and to 1,200 by the third anniversary, at which point over 890 people had been found guilty of federal crimes. These federal cases are handled by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia (D.C.). State cases, of which there are fewer, are handled in the D.C. Superior Court.
Law enforcement mounted a response to the January 6 United States Capitol attack, initially failing to maintain security perimeters and protect parts of the building from being breached and occupied, but succeeding at protecting members of Congress, and subsequently, as reinforcements arrived, to secure the breached Capitol.
The United States House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol was a bipartisan select committee of the U.S. House of Representatives established to investigate the U.S. Capitol attack.
The Justice for J6 rally was a right-wing demonstration in Washington, D.C., in support of hundreds of people who were arrested and charged following the January 6 United States Capitol attack. It occurred on September 18, 2021. The event attracted 100–200 activists. It was organized by a former Trump campaign staffer. The event was noted for extensive security preparations and concerns over possible unrest.
Kelly Meggs is an American convicted felon who previously led the Oath Keepers' Florida chapter. He was found guilty of seditious conspiracy following his forced entry into the United States Capitol during the January 6 United States Capitol attack. Meggs was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Ronald Sandlin is an American internet marketer who took part in the January 6 United States Capitol attack.
Harry Anthony Dunn is an American author, political candidate, and former police officer. He served in the United States Capitol Police from 2008 to 2023. Dunn was one of many police officers present during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, and testified with his colleagues in front of the House Select Committee investigating the attack. His efforts during the attack earned him both the Congressional Gold Medal and Presidential Citizens Medal.
Guy Wesley Reffitt is an American convicted criminal who took part in the United States Capitol attack on January 6, 2021. He was a member of the Three Percenters and was the first defendant to be convicted for the attack.
Alan Hostetter is an American convicted criminal, anti-lockdown activist and founder of the American Phoenix Project who took part in the United States Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.
Michael Fanone, the D.C. police officer who was dragged into a mob and beaten during the Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol and later publicly excoriated lawmakers and others who downplayed the attack, said he submitted his resignation from the force Monday.
This is not how we back the blue. And I tased one of them," Rodriguez said in the interview. When asked what he would tell Fanone now, Rodriguez sobbed, then muttered, with his head down: "I'm sorry he had to go through that. It's not right that he had to suffer like that. And it puts fear in him and worrying about his life. He was scared for his own life and thought about having to kill us. And he was willing to die because of his beliefs, too.
Time Magazine just released a new profile on Michael Fanone, the DC cop and narcotics officer who gained notoriety for his bravery in defending the US Capitol on January 6 (bodycam footage shows that he was tased, beaten with pipes, dragged down the Capitol steps, and threatened with his own gun) and for his continuing efforts to keep the day from being forgotten.