Officials in Arlington County, Virginia, ordered all police officers to pull out of their positions in Washington after they were ordered to clear protesters who were in front of the White House.
On Monday, Arlington County officers were involved in the effort to disperse a protest in front of the White House to clear a path for President Trump to visit St. John’s Episcopal Church. The protesters were cleared 15 minutes before the 7 p.m. curfew took effect. Arlington officials called back their officers because they did not approve of this decision.
“We ordered @ArlingtonVaPD to immediately leave DC. Appalled mutual aid agreement abused to endanger their and others safety for a photo op,” said Arlington County board member Libby Garvey.
We ordered @ArlingtonVaPD to immediately leave DC. Appalled mutual aid agreement abused to endanger their and others safety for a photo op.
— Libby Garvey (@libbygarvey) June 2, 2020
The county also released a statement addressing the decision, noting that it believes officers were placed in harm’s way for an unworthy mission.
“At the direction of the County Board, County Manager and Police Chief, all ACPD officers left the District of Columbia at 8:30 p.m. Monday, June 1, 2020,” the statement said. “The County is reevaluating the agreements that allowed our officers to be put in a compromising position that endangered their health and safety, and that of the people around them, for a purpose not worthy of our mutual aid obligations.”
Trump’s decision to disperse protesters to take the brief walk to St. John’s Episcopal Church was criticized as a photo-op by many, including CNN host Don Lemon. The church suffered fire damage from the protests that took place on Sunday night in Washington. Every president since James Madison has attended services at the church.
Protests have taken place throughout the country to condemn police brutality following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being arrested by a Minneapolis officer who held him on the ground for several minutes by kneeling on his neck. Some of the protests have devolved into riots with rampant looting, arson, and vandalism.
