Police officers file lawsuit seeking court order to hang Jan. 6 plaque at Capitol

Congress fails to instal plaque honoring Jan. 6 constabulary officers

Congress defies its ain law, fails to instal plaque honoring Jan. 6 constabulary officers 01:30

Two constabulary officers who defended the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021 attack filed a national civilian lawsuit, asking a justice to bid the hanging of a plaque to grant constabulary heroes who protected the Capitol, lawmakers and unit from rioters. 

The suit cites a 2022 instrumentality signed by President Biden that required the honorary plaque beryllium hung by March 2023. The plaque has been completed and successful retention since astatine slightest past year, but GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson has not committed to installing it astatine the Capitol.

The quality implicit the plaque has angered victims and inflamed a politically divisive contented connected Capitol Hill. Republican leaders, who power the medication of the Capitol complex, person not honored requests by immoderate officers and Democratic colleagues to bent the plaque, arsenic required nether national law.    

In their lawsuit, erstwhile Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Daniel Hodges reason President Trump has spun conspiracy theories astir Jan. 6, that person been adopted by his Republican allies successful Congress.  

"After Congress passed the law, the authorities of January 6 began to change. Donald Trump began to telephone the onslaught connected the Capitol a 'day of love,' and said that 'the cops should beryllium charged and the protesters should beryllium freed," the suit said. "As Trump's governmental fortunes rebounded, elected officials began to parrot his claims astir the day."

The suit argues the nonaccomplishment to bent the plaque violates the Equal Protection clause of the Constitution. It besides contends the Aarchitect of the Capitol, who helps negociate the facilities and grounds of the Capitol, has failed to implicit a required work nether the 2022 law.

"There seems to beryllium nary denotation that legislature enactment is going to instal this without judicial intervention," said lawyer Brendan Ballou, who has helped with crafting the lawsuit.. Ballou, a erstwhile Justice Department authoritative who handled Jan. 6 transgression cases and resigned from the bureau earlier this year, besides told CBS News, "Congress was required by instrumentality to instal this plaque to grant the officers that defended the Capitol and those wrong connected Jan. 6. They person not done so, and they person not done truthful 2 years past the ineligible deadline."

In the civilian lawsuit, the officers argue, "While Congress has installed a memorial to different officers who died successful a antithetic tragedy, it has not installed the plaque to grant those who defended the Capitol connected January 6. Meanwhile, though Congress has not installed the memorial to the officers who defended it, members person managed to grant the antheral who inspired the violence." 

"Since President Trump's inauguration, bills person been introduced to marque his day a national holiday, to rename Dulles International Airport aft him, to enactment his look connected the $100 measure (or to make a caller $250 measure successful his honor), and to carve his look into Mount Rushmore," the suit said.

It's been filed successful the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, wherever much than 1,500 Capitol riot transgression cases were filed. A justice has not yet been assigned, from among the astir 2 twelve national judges connected the D.C. national court. 

For now, the plaque remains successful retention connected the Capitol grounds, according to aggregate sources who spoke with CBS News. The hold successful hanging the plaque has fueled broader disputes and choler implicit Trump's arguable pardons of much than 1,500 Capitol riot defendants, and the deficiency of statements by Republican House members commemorating the four-year people of the battle connected the Capitol successful January.    

In a connection during a work honoring constabulary successful May, Rep. Dan Goldman, a New York Democrat, said the plaque "is inactive sitting successful retention due to the fact that Republican enactment refuses to act. Until they condemn these pardons and grant these officers, their hollow words of enactment for instrumentality enforcement are meaningless." 

Rep. Joe Morelle, a New York Democrat who is the ranking subordinate connected the Committee connected House Administration, has pushed unsuccessfully to get the the plaque installed.  

A spokesperson for the  Johnson did not instantly instrumentality requests for remark from CBS News. Johnson has been antecedently pressed by reporters and colleagues astir the hold successful hanging the plaque, but has remained soundless connected a timeline for hanging the honorary marker.