Capitol Police officers to get briefed on Sept. 18 rally against Jan. 6 arrests

Friday’s briefing, the first in a series before the Sept. 18 event, will be a test of the Capitol Police’s updated system. Local security officials have warned that the demonstration — organized by a former Trump campaign staffer — could draw violent extremists to Washington.

Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger took charge two months ago at a low point for relations between rank-and-file officers and the department’s leadership. The union had taken votes of no confidence in the department’s top officials, but Manger had pledged to turn the page.

Capitol security officials have already decided to reinstall an interior fence around the Capiotl ahead of the Sept. 18 demonstration, labeled by organizers the “Justice for J6” rally. The event has become a focal point for pro-Trump forces who have sought to rewrite the history of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack and claim those arrested for breaching the Capitol are “political prisoners.”

So far, no lawmakers have publicly confirmed they will attend the rally, including several Trump allies who have expressed similar views about the Jan. 6 defendants.

Prosecutors have arrested more than 600 people for participating in the Capitol assault. Though hundreds were charged with simply trespassing into a restricted area, the Justice Department says more than 1,000 assaults on police officers were committed that day.

In a July update marking six months after the Jan. 6 attack, the Capitol Police foreshadowed its plans to provide more advanced briefings for rank-and-file officers and Congress, touting an update to its policies that included “increased the information shared with sworn officers about obtained intelligence and event planning.”

“Externally, USCP leadership has increased intelligence sharing and collaboration between all of our local, state and federal law enforcement partners as well [as] increased our partnership within the intelligence community and Congressional stakeholders,” the department said in the update.

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