Capitol Riot: Nation’s capital marks 2 years since January 6 insurrection
WASHINGTON - The nation's capital is marking two years since a violent mob of supporters of then-President Donald Trump, fueled by his false claims of a stolen election, attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
The rioters assaulted police and smashed their way into the complex to interrupt the certification of President-elect Joe Biden's victory, forcing lawmakers into hiding.
Congress reconvened hours later to finish certifying the election.
Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, injured while confronting the rioters, suffered a stroke the next day and died from natural causes, the Washington, D.C., medical examiner's office said. Many other officers were injured.
A Trump supporter, Ashli Babbitt, was shot and killed by a police officer as she tried to breach a barricaded doorway inside the Capitol.
In the weeks that followed, four of the officers who responded to the riot took their own lives.
More than 930 people have been charged with federal crimes related to the siege. Hundreds more people remain at large on the second anniversary of the assault.
A House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack wrapped up its work last year with a recommendation to the Justice Department to prosecute the former president. A special counsel and ultimately Attorney General Merrick Garland will now decide whether to indict him.
On Friday, President Biden will present the nation's second highest civilian award to 12 individuals involved in defending the Capitol during the insurrection.
Also Friday, a heightened sense of security around the complex with some law enforcement on standby and some roads in the area closed.
Among those being honored are seven members of law enforcement, including a posthumous award to Officer Sicknick, and an award to Officer Eugene Goodman who was credited with directing rioters away from the Senate floor while lawmakers were evacuating the building.