United States Capitol Police | |
---|---|
Common name | U.S. Capitol Police |
Abbreviation | USCP |
Motto | "A Tradition of Service and Protection" |
Agency overview | |
Formed | May 2, 1828 [1] |
Employees | 2,249 [2] |
Annual budget | $708 million (FY2023) [2] |
Jurisdictional structure | |
Federal agency (Operations jurisdiction) | United States |
Operations jurisdiction | United States |
Legal jurisdiction | 1. Any area of the United States when pursuant to their special duties. 2. Congressional buildings, parks, and thoroughfares. Members of Congress, Officers of Congress, and their families throughout the United States, its territories and possessions. |
Governing body | Capitol Police Board |
Constituting instrument | |
General nature | |
Operational structure | |
Headquarters | 119 D Street, NE Washington, D.C., U.S. 20510 |
Police Officer / Special Agent (for specialized members)s | 1,879 [2] |
Civilians | 300 [2] |
Agency executive |
|
Units | 10
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Website | |
www |
The United States Capitol Police (USCP) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States with nationwide jurisdiction charged with protecting the United States Congress within the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its territories. It answers to the Capitol Police Board and is the only full-service federal law enforcement agency appointed by the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States.
The United States Capitol Police has the primary responsibility for protecting life and property, preventing, detecting, and investigating criminal acts, and enforcing traffic regulations throughout a complex of congressional buildings, parks, and thoroughfares. The Capitol Police has primary jurisdiction within buildings and grounds of the United States Capitol Complex. It also has concurrent jurisdiction with other law enforcement agencies, including the United States Park Police and the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, in an area of approximately 200 blocks around the complex. Officers also have jurisdiction throughout the District of Columbia to take enforcement action when they observe or are made aware of crimes of violence while on official duties.
Additionally, they are charged with the protection of members of Congress, officers of Congress, and their families throughout the entire United States, its territories and possessions, and the District of Columbia. While performing protective functions, the Capitol Police have jurisdiction throughout the entire United States. [3] It is informally considered as the sister agency of the United States Secret Service, which itself is responsible for the protection of the United States President and their Cabinet.
In the early 1980s, the protective mandates and jurisdictions of the U.S. Capitol Police were substantially expanded to allow them to protect legislators away from their normal jurisdictions in response to the growing risk and threats faced by legislators and the growing institutionalization of Congress. [4]
U.S. Code, Title 2, Chapter 29 defines the powers and duties of the U.S. Capitol Police. The U.S. Capitol Police has the authority to enforce the laws of the United States in any area of the United States and has the power to effect warrantless arrests for any offense against the United States committed in their presence, or for any felony cognizable under the laws of the United States upon probable cause, in the performance of their protective duties. [5] Qualified members of the U.S. Capitol Police may also travel outside of the United States when performing security advisory and liaison functions for congressional travel. [6]
The primary jurisdiction of the United States Capitol Police centers on the United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the adjacent congressional (House and Senate) offices, and the Library of Congress buildings. This primary jurisdiction is about 270 acres (0.42 sq mi; 1.1 km2), with about 58 acres (0.091 sq mi; 0.23 km2) being the Capitol grounds themselves. [7]
The U.S. Capitol Police has also concurrent jurisdiction with the District of Columbia's Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), the U.S. Park Police, the U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division, and others federal agencies to enforce District of Columbia laws, based upon cooperative agreements with MPD and the Police Coordination Act covering local cooperation with 32 federal law enforcement agencies. [8]
The U.S. Capitol Police also have extended jurisdiction over parts of Northeast, Northwest, and Southwest Washington D.C. [9] The USCP provides protection detail to House and Senate leaders, other congressmen and -women depending on individual risk analysis, lawmakers' state and district offices (with the help of local police), and "off-campus" events such as presidential nominating conventions. [2]
Four congressional committees have statutory oversight. [10] The authority of the Police Chief is, in many ways, restrained. The Capitol Police chief reports to the Capitol Police Board, a three-person group composed of the Senate and House Sergeants at Arms and the Architect of the Capitol. [11] The chief is “whipsawed between partisan politicians and career professionals like the two Sergeants at Arms and congressional staff...here they literally have hundreds of people who think they're their bosses." [12] The pay for the USCP Chief is far less than many police chiefs in the US. [12]
In FY 2021, the USCP had an annual budget of more than $515 million; [2] it employs more than 2,000 sworn and civilian personnel, making it one of the most well-funded and well-staffed police departments relative to the two square miles it guards. [7] USCP's budget is divided into a salaries account, used for overtime and benefits, and a general expenses account, used for equipment, vehicles, communications, training, medical services, forensic services, etc. USCP cannot transfer money between the accounts without the approval the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. [2] [13]
In FY 2022, USCP's annual budget was $602 million.
In FY 2023, USCP's annual budget will increase to $708 million to provide resources to fulfill security recommendations as suggested by the Government Accountability Office and the Office of Inspector General after the January 6th attacks on the Capitol. [14]
U.S. Capitol Police officers attend training at the Capitol Police Training Academy in Cheltenham, Maryland and is one of many agencies that sends its recruits to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), located in Glynco, Georgia, for initial training. Rarely, recruits are sent to the FLETC location in Artesia, New Mexico.
Following 12 weeks at FLETC, recruits return to FLETC's location in Cheltenham, for an additional 13 weeks of training. After the recruits' academy training, graduates are sworn in as law enforcement officers and assigned to one of four divisions to begin their careers. Once assigned, officers are assigned a Field Training Officer (FTO) for a definite period to provide additional on-the-job training. FTO's provide weekly updates on the subjects that have been learned and issue tests to the new officers.
Officers are also subject to a one-year probationary period. Initial salary at the start of training is $73,852.00, with an increase to $77,543.00 after graduation. [15] After 30 months of satisfactory performance, officers are eligible for promotion to private first class (PFC). [16]
USCP Officers and Special Agents are covered under the Federal Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) enhanced retirement provisions under the Civil Service Retirement (CSRS), which covers federal employees hired before 1984, or the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS), which covers employees hired in 1984 or later. Similar to other Federal LEOs covered under those enhanced retirement provisions (e.g., DEA, FBI, U.S. Marshals, U.S. Secret Service, ICE, Border Patrol), USCP officers and special agents are subject to mandatory retirement at age 57, or as soon as 20 years of service have been completed after age 57. [17]
The U.S. Capitol Police is organized into Bureaus and Offices that report to each of the Executive Team Members. [18]
USCP contains several specialty units and assignments offering expert training. These specialty units are within the Uniformed Services Bureau, the Protective Services Bureau, the Operational Services Bureau, and the Mission Assurance Bureau: [19]
Pursuant to 2 U.S.C. §1901, the U.S. Capitol Police is headed by a Chief who is appointed and reports to the Capitol Police Board following a highly selective process. [13]
J. Thomas Manger was sworn in as Chief of the U.S. Capitol Police on July 23, 2021. Previously, Yogananda Pittman served as the Acting Chief of Police and concurrently as the Assistant Chief of Police for Protective and Intelligence Operations from January 8, 2021, until Chief Manger was sworn in. [13]
Previous Chiefs include the following:
The Capitol Police Board is the body that governs the United States Capitol Police. It was established in 1873, [20] and today consists of three voting members: the Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives, the Sergeant at Arms of the United States Senate, and the Architect of the Capitol. Additionally, the chief of the Capitol Police serves ex officio as a non-voting member. [21] The chairmanship of the board alternates annually between the House and Senate Sergeants at Arms. [21]
The board, like Congress, is not subject to freedom of information laws, and the Inspector General of the board does not publish their findings and reports to the board who retains their employment. [22] [23]
The history of the United States Capitol Police dates back to 1801 when Congress moved from the city of Philadelphia to the newly constructed Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. At the time, Congress appointed one watchman to protect the building and Congressional property.
The police were formally created by Congress in 1828 following the assault on John Adams II, the son of John Quincy Adams, in the Capitol rotunda. The United States Capitol Police had as its original duty the provision of security for the United States Capitol. [24]
Its mission has expanded to provide the congressional community and its visitors with a variety of security services. These services are provided through the use of a variety of specialty support units, a network of foot and vehicular patrols, fixed posts, a full-time Containment and Emergency Response Team (CERT), K-9, a Patrol/Mobile Response Division and a full-time Hazardous Devices and Hazardous Materials Sections. [25] [26]
In 1979, the Capitol Police got a separate chief of police; the role had previously been filled by officers of the Metropolitan Police Department. [27] [28]
In 2005 Congress established the United States Capitol Police (USCP) Office of Inspector General (OIG) as a legislative agency. The Inspector General heads OIG, supervises and conducts audits, inspections, and investigations involving USCP programs, functions, systems, and operations, and reports directly to the Capitol Police Board. [29]
The Library of Congress Police were merged into the force in 2009. [30] [31]
Prior to 2021, four Capitol police officers had died in the line of duty. [32]
On July 24, 1998, a shooting occurred at a security checkpoint inside the Capitol, [33] killing one U.S. Capitol police officer. Another Capitol police officer was killed when the assailant entered Majority Whip Tom DeLay's (R-TX-22) office.
Since 2001, more than 250 Black officers have sued the Capitol Police over allegations of racism. After the 2021 storming of the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob, several Capitol police were suspended for possible complicity with the insurrectionists. [34]
Even though Washington, D.C. is 46% Black, only 32.5% of the Capitol Police is. This is in contrast to the Metropolitan Police Department (for D.C.), which is 52% Black. [34] (However, this 32.5% is higher than both the 24.8% rate in the wider metro DC/MD/VA area and the 12.3% in the country. [35] )
At a rally in Washington on January 6, 2021, Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani called for "trial by combat". [36] Trump encouraged his supporters to "peacefully demonstrate because we are the party of law and order" and then later "fight like hell" and "take back our country", and asked his supporters to march to the US Capitol. [37] [38] Eventually the building was easily stormed with little resistance. [39] Congress was in session at the time, conducting the Electoral College vote count and debating the results of the vote.
The rioters breached barricades erected by Capitol Police around the Capitol. Ultimately, one unarmed woman, Ashli Babbitt, was fatally shot by a USCP officer when she attempted to climb through a shattered window in a barricaded door, and three other rioters died in medical emergencies. [40] [41] One USCP police officer was also injured during the attack, with another officer who responded to the attack dying off-duty days later. [42] [43] [44] More than fifty USCP and MPD officers were injured during the attack, and several USCP officers were hospitalized with serious injuries. [41]
Federal authorities said they were not prepared for the unrest; however, far-right pro-Trump supporters had organized the unrest on pro-Trump far-right social media websites, including Gab and Parler, in advance. [45] [46] [47] [48] The ineffectiveness of Capitol Police's response to the rioting was harshly criticized, as was the contrast between it and the aggressive response of federal law enforcement to the George Floyd protests in the summer of 2020. [49] [40] [50] [51] [52] Law enforcement was urged "to avoid the type of show of force that had inflamed tense situations in the city last year." [40]
At the behest of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund announced his resignation the following day, effective January 16, 2021. [53] Two other officers were also suspended in January 2021. [54] Six Capitol Police officers were suspended and 29 more were being investigated in February 2021. [55] [56]
Assistant Chief Yogananda Pittman was named Acting Chief of Capitol Police following the attack. She was the first woman and first African American to lead the agency. [57] Pittman served in an acting capacity until July 22, 2021, when she was replaced by J. Thomas Manger.
On April 2, 2021, a suspect identified as Noah Green used a car to hit two Capitol Police Officers and then hit a barricade. Officer William "Billy" Evans died and the other officer was hospitalized. Officers shot and killed the suspect. The Capitol was locked down. Green said on social media that he believed he was a victim of "mind control". [58]
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The agency is led by an "Executive Team" [59] with the Chief of Police at the head, who is supported by an Assistant Chief of Police for Uniformed Operations, and a Chief Administrative Officer. There are about 18 bureaus and offices, [59] and an Inspector General. [60] Due to threats and other security measures in the wake of the 2021 United States Capitol attack, the agency announced plans to open field offices in California and Florida on July 6. [61] Congress has enabled joint oversight of the Capitol Police Board [62] and given the Chief of the Capitol Police emergency powers to request national guard or other federal assistance in cases of civil disturbance. [63]
Title | Insignia |
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Chief of Police | Four stars |
Assistant Chief of Police | Three stars |
Chief of Operations | Three stars |
Deputy Chief | Two stars |
Inspector | One Oak leaf |
Captain | Two bars connected |
Lieutenant | One bar |
Sergeant | Three chevrons |
Corporal | Two chevrons |
Private First Class | One chevron over rocker |
Private with training | One chevron |
Private | No Insignia |
The Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia (MPDC), more commonly known as the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), the DC Police, and, colloquially, the DCPD, is the primary law enforcement agency for the District of Columbia, in the United States. With approximately 3,400 officers and 600 civilian staff, it is the sixth-largest municipal police department in the United States. The department serves an area of 68 square miles (180 km2) and a population of over 700,000 people. Established on August 6, 1861, the MPD is one of the oldest police departments in the United States. The MPD headquarters is at the Henry J. Daly Building, located on Indiana Avenue in Judiciary Square across the street from the District of Columbia Court of Appeals and the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The department's mission is to "safeguard the District of Columbia and protect its residents and visitors with the highest regard for the sanctity of human life". The MPD's regulations are compiled in title 5, chapter 1 of the District of Columbia Code.
The Enforcement Act of 1871, also known as the Ku Klux Klan Act, Third Enforcement Act, Third Ku Klux Klan Act, Civil Rights Act of 1871, or Force Act of 1871, is an Act of the United States Congress which empowered the President to suspend the writ of habeas corpus to combat the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and other terrorist organizations who had terrorized and murdered innocent African Americans, public officials, and white sympathizers in the previous Confederate States of America. The act was passed by the 42nd United States Congress and signed into law by United States President Ulysses S. Grant on April 20, 1871. The act was the last of three Enforcement Acts passed by the United States Congress from 1870 to 1871 during the Reconstruction Era to combat attacks upon the suffrage rights of African Americans. The statute has been subject to only minor changes since then, but has been the subject of voluminous interpretation by courts.
The sergeant at arms and doorkeeper of the United States Senate is the protocol officer, executive officer, and highest-ranking federal law enforcement officer of the Senate of the United States. The office of the sergeant at arms of the Senate currently has just short of 1,000 full time staff.
Carlos Antonio Giménez is a Cuban-born American politician and retired firefighter serving as the U.S. representative for Florida's 28th congressional district. He was redistricted from Florida's 26th congressional district. A Republican, he served as mayor of Miami-Dade County from 2011 to 2020. He served as a Miami-Dade County Commissioner from 2003 to 2011, and was the fire chief of the City of Miami Fire Department.
Paul Douglas Irving is an American former law enforcement officer who served as the Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives from January 17, 2012, until January 7, 2021, succeeding Wilson Livingood in that post. He resigned due to his inability to fulfill his duty during the 2021 United States Capitol attack.
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.
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".
Yogananda D. Pittman is an American law enforcement officer who is the University of California, Berkeley chief of police. She was formerly the assistant chief and acting chief of the United States Capitol Police (USCP), serving in those posts during and after the 2021 insurrection at the United States Capitol.
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.
Supporters of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States, held small-scale armed protests and demonstrations at U.S. state capitols in the five days leading up to the inauguration of Joe Biden on January 20, 2021, in opposition to the results of the 2020 United States presidential election, which continued after the failure of the violent January 6 attempt to overturn the election in Trump's favor. Pro-Trump groups failed to stage organized dissent or affect the transition of power in an environment of deterrence and heightened security.
The storming of the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, raised concerns about the security of the inauguration of Joe Biden two weeks later on January 20, 2021. The inauguration, like all ceremonies since the first inauguration of George W. Bush in 2001, was designated a National Special Security Event (NSSE); however, on this occasion, the week preceding it was included in preparations. Biden chose not to move the ceremony indoors, indicating that he believed a public, outdoor ceremony was necessary to demonstrate strength. Former Homeland Security Advisor Lisa Monaco advised the Biden team on security-related matters for the ceremony.
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.
Jeffrey L. Smith, a Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police officer, shot himself on January 15, 2021, after he assisted the United States Capitol Police on January 6, during the response to the storming of the Capitol. A psychiatrist hired by Officer Smith's widow found that drastic changes in Smith's behavior after January 6 are evidence that the attack on the Capitol was the precipitating event leading to his suicide. On October 13, 2021, two United States Senators and several members of the House of Representatives called for the Mayor to award Line of Duty benefits to Officer Smith and his widow Erin Smith. On March 7, 2022, Officer Smith's death was officially ruled line of duty by the District of Columbia. After petition by his widow, DC Police and Firefighters' Retirement and Relief Board found that the "direct and sole" cause of Officer Smith's death were the injuries he received in the line of duty while responding to the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.
Howard Charles Liebengood, a United States Capitol Police officer, died by suicide on January 9, 2021, three days after he participated in the law enforcement response to the Capitol attack. He was the first of what were reported as two police suicides in the immediate aftermath of the attack, though Metropolitan Police (MPD) officer Jeffrey L. Smith's widow disputes the manner of death. In the months after the civil disturbance at the Capitol, it was generally reported that the deaths of five people who were present have, to varying degrees, been related to the event. Some members of Congress and press reports included these two in the number of fatalities, for a total of seven.
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.
[T]he historic merger with the Library of Congress Police in 2009
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