A Washington, D.C.-based civil rights law firm announced on Thursday it is taking legal action against the Metropolitan Police Department for its withholding of information about the number of arrests made on Inauguration Day.
The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund, which has a history of taking on the D.C. police department, is suing for records of the number of protesters who were arrested on Jan. 20.
The group said it has taken every step to obtain these records, including filing a Freedom of Information Act request, but has not received the information.
A 2002 D.C. law mandates police to make public all records of mass arrests and when chemicals are deployed to disperse crowds. Two hundred people were charged with crimes related to rioting downtown Washington. Six police officers were injured while on duty.
The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund also said earlier this week it does not support Peter Newsham, the interim police chief who was selected by Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser to take over the force full-time.
