Donald Trump, allies, sued by Capitol police officers for 'inciting insurrection'

Former President Donald Trump, his allies, and members of far-right extremist groups were sued, on Thursday, by US Capitol police officers who were attacked during the Capitol riot. In their lawsuit, the officers accused the former US president and his allies of purposely dispatching a violent crowd to interrupt the Congressional certification of the election on 6 January. To stay in power, Trump allegedly "worked with white supremacists, violent extremism groups, and campaign supporters to violate the Ku Klux Klan Act and commit acts of domestic terrorism."

Capitol police officers sue Trump

The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law filed the lawsuit on behalf of seven officers. It identifies the former president, Trump's campaign, Trump ally Roger Stone, and members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers extremist groups who were present at the Capitol Hill compound and in Washington on 6 January.

Democratic members of Congress have launched two more similar lawsuits in recent months. The lawsuits claim that Trump's and his allies' actions contributed to the Capitol's violent siege, which injured dozens of police officers, halted the certification of Democrat Joe Biden's electoral victory, and sent lawmakers fleeing for their lives as rioters stormed in with bats, poles, and other weapons.

The investigation into what happened that day has begun in earnest, with a House committee sending out demands for documents from intelligence, law enforcement, and other government agencies on Wednesday. Their most recent request for information on Trump and his former team was sent to the National Archive.

The documents requested are only the start of what is expected to be a long, partisan, and rancorous investigation into how the mob was able to breach the Capitol and disrupt the certification of Democrat Joe Biden's presidential victory, inflicting the most violent attack on Congress in two centuries.

Trump says, committee violated 'long-standing legal rules of privilege'' 

Trump accused the House committee of violating "long-standing legal rules of privilege" in a statement released Wednesday evening. Trump stated, "Executive privilege will be defended, not just on behalf of my Administration and the Patriots who worked beside me, but on behalf of the Office of the President of the United States and the future of our Nation."

Members of the committee are also considering requesting that telecommunications firms save the phone records of a number of people, including members of Congress, in order to figure out who knew what about the disturbance and when they knew it. The rioters drove the then-vice president and members of Congress to flee for their lives, causing more than $1 million in damages and injuring dozens of police officers with chants of "hang Mike Pence."

White House records, as well as material from the departments of Defense, Justice, Homeland Security, and Interior, and the FBI and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, were sought from the National Archives. So far, the committee has heard from officers who were present in the Capitol on 6 January. Those officers expressed their fear and frustration in impassioned testimony about law enforcement leaders' failure to predict the potential for violence and comprehend the scope of Trump supporters' plotting. A Capitol police officer who fatally shot protester Ashli Babbitt was cleared of criminal wrongdoing months ago and was cleared administratively by the department last week.

(with inputs from PTI, Image: AP)