Capitol Police Chief to Resign, After Botched Riot Response and Pelosi’s Demand

Sarah RumpfJan 7th, 2021, 7:02 pm
 

Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images

Wednesday’s violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol is giving rise to criticisms of the advance planning, strategy, and response of the Capitol Police, and now Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund has reportedly submitted his resignation.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) spoke earlier Thursday at a press conference, announcing that she had received the resignation of the House Sergeant of Arms, Paul Irving, and would be asking for Sund’s resignation as well.

The Capitol Police report to Congress, and Pelosi said that there will be additional reviews of the agency and how they responded to Wednesday’s riots.

NBC News reported the news that a Capitol Police spokeswoman had confirmed that Sund would be resigning, effective January 16, 2021, and was doing so because of the botched response to the riot.

The Capitol Police Union had also called for Sund’s resignation, along with several other members of the leadership. An open letter from the union’s chairman said that the Capitol Police “rank and file…are frustrated and demoralized by the lack of leadership that undermined the response of law enforcement to the violent events at the U.S. Capitol on January 6th,” and made specific complaints about the lack of “immediate backup and equipment needed to control the surging crowd as events quickly spiraled out of control.”

According to a report by the AP, Sund said that they had planned for a “free speech demonstration,” and did not expect the “violent attack,” adding that it was the first time he had experienced anything like it in his 30-year law enforcement career.

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Sarah Rumpf - Contributing Editor

Sarah Rumpf joined Mediaite in 2020 and is a Contributing Editor focusing on politics, law, and the media. A native Floridian, Sarah attended the University of Florida, graduating with a double major in Political Science and German, and earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the UF College of Law. Sarah's writing has been featured at National Review, The Daily Beast, Reason, Law&Crime, Independent Journal Review, Texas Monthly, The Capitolist, Breitbart Texas, Townhall, RedState, The Orlando Sentinel, and the Austin-American Statesman, and her political commentary has led to appearances on television, radio, and podcast programs across the globe. Follow Sarah on Threads, Twitter, and Bluesky.