Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Wednesday night that she was extending the district’s public emergency declaration for 15 days — a span that will end the day after President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration.
“Today, First Amendment protests turned violent,” Bowser said in a statement. “Many persons came to the District armed and for the purpose of engaging in violence and destruction and have engaged in violence and destruction. They have fired chemical irritants, bricks, bottles, and guns. They have breached the security of the Capitol and their destructive and riotous behavior has the potential to spread beyond the Capitol. Their motivation is ongoing.”
JUST IN: Washington, D.C., Mayor Bowser extends public emergency for 15 days, through the end of President Trump’s time in office. pic.twitter.com/n0T7boTys0
— MSNBC (@MSNBC) January 7, 2021
At least four protests were scheduled in Washington, D.C., for Wednesday, the day Congress was expected to count the votes of the Electoral College and certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. Those protests descended into chaos as demonstrators breached the congressional building — smashing windows, breaking into offices and looting rooms. One woman was shot and killed by law enforcement inside the Capitol.
Trump stoked the chaos throughout the day, repeating claims of widespread voter fraud and telling his supporters “we will never give up” and “we will never concede.” At one point, he told the crowd to go to the Capitol after his speech was over.
After the Capitol was breached, Trump made several appeals to law and order and asked his supporters for peace but still claimed he won the election. In a series of tweets, Trump sympathized with and appeared to defend his extremist supporters, saying in one, “These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots.”
At Wednesday night’s press conference, Bowser called the mayhem “an affront not only on our American democracy but on our own DC values.”
“We step up daily to support the federal government in the many federal events and activities that take place in our city to ensure safety in the nation’s capital despite having zero representation, having no votes in the same Congress where this siege took place today,” the mayor added. “I know that I speak for all of us when I say that this unprecedented attack on our American democracy was incited by the United States president, and he must be held accountable.”
At the press conference, Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee provided an update on law enforcement efforts following the chaos. Contee confirmed the death of the woman, an Air Force veteran, and said that two men had also been killed. He did not specify causes.
D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee says there were 3 more deaths around the Capitol grounds beyond the woman shot inside the building: one woman and two men were killed, cause not specified
— ◥◤@kristoncapps (@kristoncapps) January 7, 2021
Contee also said that as of Wednesday night, MPD had made 52 arrests.
