A Montgomery County police officer was found guilty today by a U.S. Circuit Court judge in Washington, D.C. of charges stemming from the violence at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Officer Justin Lee, 25, of Rockville, was found guilty of two felony offenses: assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers and civil disorder. Judge Trevor N. McFadden also found Lee guilty of the misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds, and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building. Lee will be sentenced by Judge McFadden on November 22, 2024.
The Montgomery County Police Department issued a statement today in which it said that Lee was not yet employed by the County police force on January 6, 2021. It stated Lee's actions at the Capitol did not come to light through its standard background investigation when Lee was hired. Lee was relieved of his police powers while the case went to trial. The MCPD stated that Lee's employment by the department will now be terminated following today's guilty verdict.
Lee was identified in 2023 by law enforcement officials who were reviewing video footage from the Capitol on January 6, 2021 after they first noticed his Maryland flag gaiter. The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia specifically accused Lee of throwing two objects at officers who were trying to prevent people from entering the Capitol. One incendiary device produced a smoke cloud. Lee was also accused of pointing a flashlight beam at officers.
Pointing a flashlight beam! Obviously that's life in prison. 😌
ReplyDeleteLee took a smoke bomb from another rioter, pulled the pin and lobbed it into a tunnel leading into the Capitol, hitting a police officer’s shield as he was battling the mob, the judge said. He threw “rock-like” objects into the scrum and shone a flashlight toward officers to impede their vision, the judge said.
DeleteOne officer testified that the smoke bomb made him feel disoriented, like a “sitting duck.” He slipped and fell and was forced to retreat as Lee hurled objects into the tunnel, the judge said.
Let's be perfectly clear about the charges. The sentencing will be well earned.
This is not who we want serving our people
ReplyDeleteSo much for standard background checks.
ReplyDeleteFact - "Approximately six months after the riot, Lee applied to and was hired by the Montgomery County Police Department. In a statement following his arrest, the department said Lee’s involvement in the riot was not discovered during a background check because he had not yet been identified by the FBI in connection with Jan. 6."
DeleteThis person might have committed a crime, but according to The Supreme Court, many were overcharged.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c199l00gmmvo
If this doesn’t illustrate how badly MCPD is hurting for applicants…then I don’t know what else would! Congratulations to our CE and Council for ruining a once first class police force!
ReplyDelete