Capitol Police Internal Investigation of Jan. 6 Recommends Disciplinary Action For Six Officers

Photo credit: Brendan Smialowski, AFP via Getty Images.

The U.S. Capitol Police conducted 38 internal investigations related to the conduct of their officers on January 6, when the Capitol building was overrun by rioters. There was not sufficient evidence that any of the officers committed a crime, but disciplinary action was recommended against six officers.

In a press release on Saturday, the USCP announced that out of the 38 cases, they were able to identify the officers involved in 26 of them. In 20 cases, “no wrongdoing was found.”

For the six officers facing disciplinary action, three were for “conduct unbecoming,” one was for “failure to comply with directives,” one for “improper remarks,” and one for “improper dissemination of information.”

As the USCP press release noted, the details of their internal investigations, “including any recommended disciplinary actions, as well as personnel matters” are not considered public information. None of the names of the officers involved — those cleared of wrongdoing or those facing discipline — were released.

That being said, this week, the USCP provided the Department of Justice with edited documents from their case files “as part of the ongoing discovery production in the prosecution of the January 6 rioters,” with the names of officers, witnesses, and complainants redacted.

Politico reporter Kyle Cheney had more information about this discovery production and how it affected the timing of this public announcement from USCP:

The timing of the release was, in part, a result of the fact that prosecutors had in recent days begun sharing the reports with many of the 600-plus defendants charged in connection with the Capitol riot. Defendants have sought these reports to argue that they believed the police had given them permission to enter the building and had encouraged them in some cases. It’s unclear whether the reports will substantiate any of those claims.

The six cases where disciplinary action was recommended “should not diminish the heroic efforts of the United States Capitol Police officers,” the USCP statement concluded. “On January 6, the bravery and courage exhibited by the vast majority of our employees was inspiring.”