Latest news with #UnitedStatesCapitolPolice
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Outgoing US Capitol Police chief criticizes Trump pardons for Jan. 6 defendants
Outgoing United States Capitol Police (USCP) Chief J. Thomas Manger has sounded off on President Donald Trump's pardons of the Jan. 6 defendants – calling the day of the sweeping pardons one of the most troubling moments of his career, according to a report. Manger, who will retire later this week, has been a vocal critic of those who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and lamented Trump pardoning nearly all defendants shortly after his inauguration this year. He told Wtop "I was angry and as frustrated about that as I've ever been professionally." Trump Pardons Nearly All Jan. 6 Defendants On Inauguration Day Manger told the outlet that as discouraging as that was, it made him determined to continue to make improvements. "What it made me feel like is somebody's got to stay here and stand up for these cops," Manger said. Manger has served as USCP chief since July 2021 and was hired to rebuild the force and implement reforms to enhance security and preparedness in the wake of the Jan. 6 riot. The more than 100 reform recommendations included expanding intelligence, training and riot-response capabilities. Read On The Fox News App He has often condemned the attack, referring to it as an "insurrection" and an attack on democracy. Trump has referred to those who were imprisoned as "hostages." "Some people in this country believe January 6 wasn't that bad," Manger told WTOP. "My cops know what happened on January 6. They know what happened. They were here." Manger's police career stretches back to 1977, when he started out as an officer with the Fairfax County Police Department in Virginia. He rose to chief of department in 1998 and remained in that role until 2004. Manger became chief of police in Montgomery County, Maryland, in 2004 and held the position until his retirement in 2019. Us Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger Upset Colbert Crew Was Spared On July 23, 2021, he was appointed chief of the United States Capitol Police, succeeding Acting Chief Yogananda Pittman. When news broke that the Justice Department had agreed in principle to pay $5 million to the family of Ashli Babbitt, a former Air Force veteran who was shot dead during the Capitol Riot, Manger sent a message to his department's officers writing that he was "extremely disappointed." "In 2021, the DOJ said that there was no evidence to show that law enforcement broke the law. After a thorough investigation, it was determined to be a justified shooting. "This settlement sends a chilling message to law enforcement officers across our nation — especially those who have a protective mission like ours," Manger wrote, according to the Washington Post. In December 2022, the USCP were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal — the highest civilian honor bestowed by Congress — for their bravery on Jan. 6, 2021. Manger accepted the honor on behalf of the department. The USCP dates back to 1800, when the Congress moved from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C., and a lone watchman, John Golding, was hired to protect the Capitol Building, according to USCP website. After a number of incidents in 1827 that could have been prevented with sufficient security and surveillance, then President John Quincy Adams asked that a regular Capitol Police force be established. On May 2, 1828, Congress passed an act that expanded the police regulations of the City of Washington to include the Capitol and Capitol Square. It is on this date that the USCP commemorates its article source: Outgoing US Capitol Police chief criticizes Trump pardons for Jan. 6 defendants
The Hill
11-03-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
US Capitol Police chief retiring in May
United States Capitol Police (USCP) chief Thomas Manger is retiring in early May after serving more than four decades in law enforcement. Manger, who was hired after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol building, will retire on May 2, a USCP spokesperson told The Hill. 'I am honored to have served with a team that is dedicated to this critical mission. It is time for a new leader to continue the success that we started together,' Manger said in a statement. Before serving as the USCP chief, Manger worked as the head of the Montgomery County Police. Manger officially became the USCP head in July of 2021. Over 100 police officers were injured during the riot. Four died by suicide days and months after the attack. One Capitol Police officer died from a stroke a day after getting injured during the breach. During his tenure, the Capitol police experienced a budget increase, resolved all of the 103 recommendations made by the office of inspectors general after the Jan. 6 attack and increased hiring. In early January, Manger questioned the possibility of Jan. 6 rioters' pardon. 'What message does that send to police officers across this nation, if someone doesn't think that a conviction for an assault or worse against a police officer is something that should be upheld, given what we ask police officers to do every day,' Manger said at the time. Manger did not directly discuss President Trump's promise to issue a pardon to a large number of Jan. 6 defendants once sworn in as commander-in-chief. Shortly after assuming office, Trump issued around 1,500 'full, complete and unconditional pardons' to Jan. 6 defendants. Manger served more than 46 years as a police officer. He worked for over 24 years as a chief of police at Montgomery County Police, Fairfax County Police, and the USCP. 'When I took the oath of office in the summer of 2021 — I could not have imagined the progress a police department of our size could make in just a few years,' Manger said. 'We made these changes to this Department because of the work ethic and dedication of our entire workforce, as well as the support of our Congressional stakeholders.'
The Independent
11-02-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
South Carolina AG says Rep. Nancy Mace's rape allegations never made it to his office
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson says shocking allegations of sexual abuse made by GOP congresswoman Nancy Mace against four men were never referred to his office. The South Carolina representative accused her ex-fiancé Patrick Bryant and three business of his associates of sex crimes – including rape and voyeurism – in a nearly hour-long speech on the House floor on Monday. Mace, 47, branded Wilson a 'do-nothing' and claimed he failed to act on her accusations after allegedly having 'turned over everything' she found. 'Did South Carolina's attorney general have any of these predators indicted after being provided clear cut-and-dry evidence including video, photos and witnesses?,' she said. A spokesperson for Wilson's office said in response that Mace's attack was 'categorically false'. It clarified that a police report would need to be formally filed and an investigation launched before it was referred to state prosecutors. 'At this time, our office has not received any reports or requests for assistance from any law enforcement or prosecution agencies regarding these matters,' Wilson's office said in a statement. 'Additionally, the attorney general and members of his office have had no role and no knowledge of these allegations until her public statements.' The AG's office also stated that Mace had several opportunities to raise her concerns with Wilson over the last six months. The statement continued: 'Congresswoman Mace and the Attorney General have been at multiple events together over the last six months [and has his] personal cellphone number. Not once has she approached or reached out to him regarding any of her concerns.' The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division also confirmed it opened an investigation into Bryant regarding allegations of assault, harassment and voyeurism on December 14, 2023, after being contacted by the United States Capitol Police. 'This active and ongoing investigation is complex and has involved multiple lawyers. Once the investigation is completed, it will be sent to a prosecutor for review,' it said in a statement. In her speech in the lower chamber, Mace claimed she had discovered a digital cache of more than 10,000 videos and photos that showed Bryant and his business associates physically abusing numerous women, including herself. 'I accidentally uncovered some of the most heinous crimes against women imaginable,' she alleged. 'We are talking about rape, nonconsensual photos, non-consensual videos of women and underage girls, and the premeditated, calculated, exploitation of women and girls in my district.' In another plea, she added: 'To the men watching, their next victim could be your daughter, your sister, your wife," Mace said. "To the women watching tonight, their next victim could be you.' The conservative firebrand claimed she found a video of a naked woman who was not aware she was being filmed, only to realize the woman was her. 'I was horrified. I was humiliated. I was violated,' Mace said. Mace further alleged that the files she found included numerous non-consensual images, such as 'upskirt photos,' as well as sexual assault. The congresswoman did not present any evidence, while Bryant denies all allegations of wrongdoing. "I take this matter seriously, and will cooperate fully with any necessary legal processes to clear my name," Bryant told The New York Times. Members of Congress have legal immunity for anything they say 'within the legislative sphere,' indicating that Mace may be protected from lawsuits over her remarks. Since her election in 2021, Mace has been vocal about her past experiences of rape and sexual assault. She has pitched herself as a defender of women's rights even as she supported restrictions on abortion and campaigned for Donald Trump, who was found liable for sexual abuse in a civil trial. In recent months she has pushed to ban trans people from public bathrooms corresponding to their lived gender, at one point repeatedly shouting the slur "tr***y" in a House hearing. In November, Mace won a third term in the House. Both Mace and Wilson are now mulling gubernatorial runs. In recent weeks, the lawmaker has derided Wilson — who is serving his fourth term as South Carolina's AG — and questioned his ability to fulfil the roles of the state's top prosecutor. 'He has no business even thinking about running for governor, and I will take him out,' Mace said in a social media tirade. 'I will personally make sure that he is never governor of South Carolina.' She also repeated her remark that Wilson is a 'do-nothing attorney general'. In response to the attacks, Wilson's office said: 'It is clear that Attorney General Alan Wilson has built his career on protecting the most vulnerable in our state; any statement otherwise is blatantly false and politically motivated.'
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Editor's notebook: The Tennessee Republican ‘law and order' conundrum
Donald Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as rioters try to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by) All eight Republicans in the U.S. House and both senators voted for the Laken Riley Act on Jan. 22. The act, which is named for the Georgia college student killed in February, mandates that Department of Homeland Security officials detain undocumented immigrants charged with any act of theft. But on the violence of Jan. 6, 2021, when rioters backing an effort by President Donald Trump to overturn the results of the 2020 election stormed the U.S. Capitol, 'law and order' gets a little squishier for our representatives. A review of social media posts from that 2021 day show several issued stern admonishments about the violence: mob members tear-gassed and beat 174 law enforcement officers. One died of his injuries a day later. Tennessee's senior senator, Marsha Blackburn, wrote 'These actions at the US Capitol by protestors are truly despicable and unacceptable. While I am safe and sheltering in place, these protests are prohibiting us from doing our constitutional duty. I condemn them in the strongest possible terms. We are a nation of laws.' Sen. Bill Hagerty — a freshman who had not yet been sworn into office — posted on X, 'I have always believed in peaceful protesting. What is happening at the U.S. Capitol right now is not peaceful, this is violence. I condemn it in the strongest terms. We are a nation of laws and this must stop.' Rep. Tim Burchett, the Knoxville Republican representing Tennessee Congressional District 2, posted on his official website, 'The rioting at the U.S. Capitol is disgusting and criminal. The President needs to publicly tell his supporters to stop or else people are going to get hurt or possibly die. Thank God for the United States Capitol Police officers working to get the situation under control; they have families just like we do.' Similarly, District 7 U.S. Rep. Mark Green, a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and retired U.S. Army officer, posted on X that day: 'We are a country of law and order—this violence is UNACCEPTABLE. Pray for our nation's Capitol Police and law enforcement officers.' Given the hard lines taken by these lawmakers about the disgraceful Capitol riot, I figured they would also have thoughts about President Donald Trump's decision to pardon 1,500 rioters, including neo-fascist Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio and Steward Rhodes of Oath Keepers, the latter an anti-government militia. Blackburn and other GOP senators didn't respond to repeated questions from D.C. reporters about the pardons, States Newsroom's D.C. Bureau reported. Perhaps, I thought, Blackburn will respond to a Tennessee-based journalist. I reached out to get comments from Blackburn, Hagerty, Burchett and Green, sharing with each of them their 2021 posts and asking for a response to Trump's pardons. Only Hagerty's office replied. 'During the last few years, it became painfully apparent to Senator Hagerty that the Biden Department of Justice used the January 6 investigation to excessively punish individuals for their political views rather than their actions— most of those pardoned were targeted for non-violent offenses like trespassing,' wrote a spokesperson for Hagerty. Throughout his presidential campaign last year, Trump was clear about his intention to pardon the Jan. 6 protesters, the response continued. 'The American people knew his intentions and voted for him.' I give credit to Hagerty's office for responding. But the hypocrisy of the other members is something to behold. How can the officials who were quick to label immigrants as terrorists remain silent over pardons for the domestic terrorists who had those same lawmakers cowering under their desks? Many of us are more concerned about right-wing groups who seek to destabilize the government through actions like the Capitol riots — the 'patriots' in our midst who chose violence to achieve political aims and are now released into the population. No one, we often hear, should be above the law. Yet, if the silence from Tennessee's Republican delegation is any indication, it's clear Tennesseans can't count on our federal representatives to take a moral high ground, as they choose not only to cave to the whims of the current administration, but to fail to even have the guts to publicly defend their choices. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Cedar News
27-01-2025
- Politics
- Cedar News
U.S. Capitol Police officers have arrested a suspect who claimed to be carrying a Molotov cocktail and a knife
Join our Telegram The United States Capitol Police in Washington, D.C., have reported the arrest of a suspect near the East Plaza, close to the ramp leading to the south door of the U.S. Capitol Building. The suspect allegedly claimed to possess a Molotov cocktail and a knife.
