(Image: SPD)

The Seattle Police Department has fired two officers for trespassing after investigators said they traveled to Washington D.C. during the January 6th riot and were documented in restricted areas of the Capitol.

Chief Adrian Diaz announced the terminations of Alexander and Caitlin Everett Friday, a married couple pro-law and order organization the National Police Association says were in D.C. for their honeymoon and to be part of the Donald Trump rally calling for the disruption of the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.

“The two officers were found to have crossed the outdoor barriers established by the Capitol Police and were directly next to the Capitol Building,” Diaz said in a statement. “Clear evidence places them directly next to the Capitol Building.  It is beyond absurd to suggest that they did not know they were in an area where they should not be, amidst what was already a violent, criminal riot.”

“On behalf of the Seattle Police Department, I send my apologies to the Capitol Police, Washington DC Metro Police, Virginia State Police and all the other agencies that put themselves on the line protecting the Capitol and who continue to bear the scars of that day,” Diaz concludes.

Last month, the city’s police accountability office recommended firing the Everetts. Complaints against the four other officers identified during the investigation were not sustained.

“These officers were entitled to exercise their freedom of expression and to assemble,” Office of Professional Accountability director Andrew Myerberg writes in his summary of the investigation’s findings. “That they did so in a manner contrary to the majority view in Seattle does not alter this view.”

The OPA’s investigation faced many limitations typical in department investigations. While the office had access to video, department phones, email, and documents, the investigation turned up little new information. Video review was particularly fruitless, the OPA said. “OPA conducted extensive review of a number of third-party videos,” the report reads. “However, due to the sheer volume of video, this review was inherently limited.” The OPA says access to phones and email also turned up no useful evidence in the investigation.

The recommendations to fire the officers found to have trespassed came thanks to evidence from the FBI and video and stills the OPA says showed the employees in a restricted area of the Capitol on January 6th.

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