New documents describe critical errors in the Capitol Police’s handling of intelligence prior to the Jan. 6 attack on Congress, revealing missed warning signs that — despite the undeniable heroism of many of its officers — contributed to the agency’s failed defense of the Capitol.
The documents, which were obtained by the Project on Government Oversight, add to a body of reporting by the government and the press surrounding failures by the Capitol Police intelligence division and its key leaders to clearly, consistently, and widely communicate the severity of raw intelligence threats to the Capitol and lawmakers — a failure that on Jan. 6 left Congress under-defended and rank-and-file officers unprepared.
One of the new documents is a Capitol Police “after-action” report, based on the observations and professional opinions of employees. It contains a section on intelligence that says intelligence leaders who were hired in late 2020 took actions that “may have contributed to the tragedy” on January 6.
It also says intelligence leaders kept seasoned analysts from assessing Jan. 6-related threat reports and that leaders “essentially dismantled” a unit that analyzes online posts.
In the run-up to Jan. 6, online message boards and social media platforms brimmed with violent messages directed towards lawmakers on Jan. 6 as users stated their intentions to halt the certification of the 2020 presidential election. The number of online threats exploded when then-President Donald...
A nursing home run by the family of Kim Keon-hee lost the first trial in a lawsuit seeking to cancel the National Health Insurance Service's disposition to claw back about 1.4 billion won in long-...