WASHINGTON – Seven members of the U.S. Capitol Police Department have sued former President Donald Trump, his campaign and a host of others, including Philadelphia-based Proud Boys President Zachary Rehl, alleging the former president conspired and cooperated with right-wing extremist groups to incite the infamous Jan. 6 siege on Congress at the U.S. Capitol Building.
Conrad Smith and Melissa Marshall of Washington, D.C., Danny McElroy, Michael Fortune and Jason DeRoche of Maryland, Byron Evans of Virginia and Governor Latson of North Carolina filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Aug. 25 versus Trump, his presidential campaign, Rehl, the Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers, Roger Stone and nearly 30 other defendants.
The federal suit alleges Trump “worked with white supremacists, violent extremist groups and campaign supporters to violate the Ku Klux Klan Act and commit acts of domestic terrorism in an unlawful effort to stay in power”, labeling the siege as the violent culmination of months of inflammatory rhetoric from Trump.
Per the suit, the remaining defendants allegedly “conspired to use force, intimidation, and threats to prevent Joe Biden and Kamala Harris from taking office, to prevent Congress from counting the electoral votes, and to prevent the Capitol Police from carrying out their lawful duties.”
Rehl, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and longtime Philadelphia resident, whose father and grandfather each served as members of the Philadelphia Police Department, acts as the President of the Proud Boys’ Philadelphia chapter.
In March, federal prosecutors leveraged charges of helping to incite the Jan. 6 siege against Rehl, based upon their discovery of encrypted text messages between him and other Proud Boys officials where they discussed plans to “rile up the normies” who had gathered in Washington, D.C. to protest that day.
This past June, a criminal court judge ordered Rehl to be lodged in a Philadelphia detention center until his trial, citing him as an ongoing danger to the community.
At least 140 officers were injured in the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack, while four additional officers present that day later went to take their own lives. Four others died in the attack.
The seven plaintiffs named in the lawsuit have a combined 150+ years of experience with the U.S. Capitol Police Department. Five of the plaintiffs are Black, and utilized the litigation to detail racially-motivated assaults they endured from rioters while attempting to protect the U.S. Capitol Building.
DeRoche says he was struck by batteries and attacked with mace and bear spray until his eyes were swollen shut; Latson says he was inside the U.S. Senate chamber when the rioters breached the chamber and beat him as they shouted racial slurs.
The suit alleges the defendants violated both local anti-bias laws on the books in Washington, D.C., plus the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act, which sought to protect Americans from violent political acts.
The seven plaintiffs offered the following joint statement:
“We joined the Capitol Police to uphold the law and protect the Capitol community. On Jan. 6, we tried to stop people from breaking the law and destroying our democracy. Since then, our jobs and those of our colleagues have become infinitely more dangerous. We want to do what we can to make sure the people who did this are held accountable, and that no one can do this again,” the plaintiffs said.
A formal investigation into the Jan. 6 siege was recently undertaken by the U.S. House of Representatives.
For counts of conspiracy to interfere with civil rights, failure to prevent conspiracy to interfere with civil rights, violation of the D.C. Bias-Related Crimes Act, battery, assault and negligence, the plaintiffs are seeking various reliefs:
• A declaratory judgment that the actions described herein constitute a violation of 42 U.S.C. Sections 1985(1) and 1986, 40 U.S.C. Section 5104, D.C. Code Sections 22-3704(a) and 1322, and D.C. Code Sections 10-503.16(b);
• Appropriate injunctive relief;
• Compensatory damages in an amount to be determined by the jury at trial;
• Punitive damages in an amount to be determined by the jury at trial;
• An award of costs and reasonable attorney’s fees pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Section 1988 and D.C. Code Section 22-3704; and
• Such other relief as the Court deems necessary and just, plus a jury trial on all issues so triable.
The plaintiffs are represented by Jon M. Greenbaum, David R. Brody, Noah Baron and Edward G. Caspar of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, in Washington, D.C.
The defendants have not yet obtained legal counsel.
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia case 1:21-cv-02265
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com