Former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund delivered an eight-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other civic leaders on Monday, supplying a comprehensive account of the occasions leading to the Jan. 6 riots in addition to a comprehensive timeline of events as he watched them unfold on that day.
Pelosi promptly called for Sund to step down Jan. 7. Later that afternoon, Sund filed a letter of resignation.
From the letter, Sund said he understood about the intellect leading up to the abusive event and explained why he relied upon evaluations, in addition to his attempts to procure aid before and during the episode, by the National Guard and other law enforcement partners.
“Perfect hindsight doesn’t alter the simple fact that nothing in our own collective expertise or our intellect — such as intelligence offered by FBI, Secret Service, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and D.C. Metropolitan Police (MPD) — signaled a well-coordinated, armed attack on the Capitol may happen on Jan. 6,” Sund composed.
Sund stated that intelligence indicated the Jan. 6 event could be like two preceding post-election demonstrations from November and December, which he explained as MAGA I and MAGA II. Thoughhe composed, the evaluation contained language which”members of their Proud Boys, white supremacist groups, Antifa, along with other extremist groups were expected to take part in the Jan. 6 occasion and they could tend to become violent.” He proceeds:”This was quite much like the intelligence evaluation of the Dec. 12, 2020, MAGA II occasion” During both of these prior protests there was a”limited quantity of damage or violence to officers, and also a restricted number of arrests.”
“Having previously managed two important post-election demonstrations successfully using an action program which was based on intelligence assessments that had demonstrated to be credible, trustworthy, and precise, we fairly assumed that the intelligence evaluation for Jan. 6, 2021, was likewise accurate.”
On Jan. 4, the Capitol Police Intelligence and Inter-Agency Coordination Division”evaluated”the amount of likelihood of acts of civil disobedience/arrests happening according to current intelligence data,” as”Remote” into”Improbable” to every one the classes expected to show on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021,” based on Sund.
Sund said he led the division to be set on”all hands-on deck” status, which meant every sworn officer will be functioning. In addition, he said he triggered seven Civil Disturbance Unit platoons, roughly 250 officers, together with four of these platoons outfitted in helmets, protective clothing and shields.
On Jan. 5, the day prior to the mob stormed the Capitol, Sund hosted a digital assembly using”a couple of the greatest law enforcement and army officers from D.C., such as the FBI, U.S. Secret Service along with the National Guard.”
“Throughout the assembly, no thing, such as the FBI, supplied some intelligence suggesting that there could be a coordinated barbarous attack on the United States Capitol by tens of thousands of well-equipped armed insurrectionists,” Sund composed.
On the eve of this attempted insurrection, Sund said that he sent an email to his leadership group to make sure that all officers were fully briefed to expect a”long day, big bands, and clashes which may possibly consist of violence.”
Since the audience was trying to breach the construction, Sund composed, the Capitol Police Dignitary Protection Division ready to evacuate congressional leadership. Capitol Police”tried to procure hallways to avoid the mob from progressing further in the construction” and”pioneered evacuations” of members of Congress to secure places.
Sund claimed the U.S. Capitol Police”failed to neglect” and the department”doesn’t have the manpower, the coaching, or the capacities to take care of a armed insurrection involving tens of thousands of people bent on violence and destruction whatsoever costs.”
“The whole intelligence community appears to have missed that,” Sund wrote.
“I’ve asked retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré to direct an immediate review of security infrastructure, inter-agency procedures and control and command,” Pelosi said at the moment. “The entire world is a respected leader with expertise handling crisis.”
Sund did acknowledge a”variety of programs broke down” and “officials or officials that violated policies or directives, or their oath, have to be held liable.”
In final, Sund vowed from the correspondence that he”will do anything that I could, and everything that’s asked of me, to help make sure an attack such as Jan. 6, 2021, never occurs again” and he stands”ready, willing and ready to help in any effort”
