Police officials and federal prosecutors say that as many as 140 officers were injured during the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
“I have officers who were not issued helmets prior to the attack who have sustained head injuries,” Gus Papathanasiou, union chairman, said in a statement Wednesday. “One officer has two cracked ribs and two smashed spinal discs and another was stabbed with a metal fence stake, to name some of the injuries.”
Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick died after trying to defend the Capitol from rioters. One Capitol Police officer and one D.C. police officer who were responding on the scene have died by suicide since the attack.
And since Jan. 6, 38 Capitol Police employees have tested positive for the coronavirus, almost entirely officers and supervisors who responded to the riot, Papathanasiou said.
At least 81 Capitol Police officers were assaulted during the siege of the Capitol, according to filings by federal prosecutors. The filings did not detail injuries sustained by officers, and a Capitol Police spokeswoman did not respond to a Washington Post request for comment on officer injuries.
About 65 D.C. police officers also suffered injuries on Jan. 6, including several concussions from head blows from various objects, including metal poles ripped from inauguration-related scaffolding and even a pole with an American flag attached.
