2 Capitol Police officers sue Trump for inciting Jan. 6 riot

Jan. 6 Capitol insurrectionists
(Image credit: Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images)

Two Capitol Police officers filed a lawsuit against former President Donald Trump on Tuesday, accusing him of inciting the mob that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6.

The veteran officers, James Blassingame and Sidney Hemby, said members of the mob used pepper spray and tear gas to assault them during the deadly riot, which broke out as lawmakers tried to certify President Biden's victory.

The complaint, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., also states that Blassingame is "haunted by the memory of being attacked and of the sensory impacts — the sights, sounds, smells, and even tastes of the attack remain close to the surface. He experiences guilt of being unable to help his colleagues who were simultaneously being attacked and of surviving where other colleagues did not."

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In December, Trump tweeted that there would be "a big protest in D.C. on Jan. 6. Be there. Will be wild!" The officers are suing for unspecified damages for their injuries and emotional distress.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.