Seven US Capitol Police officers have filed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump, Stop the Steal rally organizers and members of far-right extremist groups, accusing them of spreading lies, using White supremacist sentiments to attempt to overthrow the 2020 election, and ultimately bearing responsibility for the violent attack that left more than 140 officers on January 6.
The 71-page lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in US District Court for the District of Columbia, says that “plaintiffs and their fellow law enforcement officers risked their lives to defend the Capitol from a violent, mass attack — an attack provoked, aided, and joined by Defendants in an unlawful effort to use force, intimidation, and threats to prevent Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 Presidential election.”
“Because of Defendants’ unlawful actions, Plaintiffs were violently assaulted, spat on, tear-gassed, bear-sprayed, subjected to racial slurs and epithets, and put in fear for their lives,” the lawsuit says. “Plaintiffs’ injuries, which Defendants caused, persist to this day.”
The lawsuit also alleges the defendants spread false claims of election fraud and “incited violence against members of Congress and the law enforcement officers whose job it was to protect them.”
Among the defendants are alleged members of the far-right extremist groups Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, who are now facing criminal charges for their alleged roles in the riot.
The new lawsuit is the latest in a string of legal actions against the former President designed to hold him liable for the deadly US Capitol insurrection. It comes a few days after the US Capitol Police’s Office of Professional Responsibility determined the USCP officer who shot and killed pro-Trump rioter Ashli Babbitt on January 6 will not face any disciplinary action.
