US court dismisses police officers’ lawsuit over Jan. 6 plaque — The Hill

A US federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit by former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and current Metropolitan Police officer Daniel Hodges. They challenged the fact that their names and the names of other law enforcement officers were not included on a commemorative plaque about police actions during the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.

US District Judge Dabney Friedrich granted the Architect of the Capitol’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit for lack of jurisdiction. As The Hill reports, the judge ruled that the officers lacked legal standing at the time the lawsuit was filed.

Plaque with a QR code

The plaque lists law enforcement agencies and organizations that sent personnel to defend the Capitol. The names of individual officers are available through a QR code that visitors can scan, according to court documents.

The memorial was planned to be permanently installed on the Capitol’s west front. Since March, it has been temporarily installed in a nonpublic Senate wing. Dunn and Hodges argued that the plaque had effectively been hidden and demanded that it be prominently placed in a publicly accessible area of the Senate wing.

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The court’s position

Friedrich noted that legal standing is assessed as of the time a complaint is filed. The judge concluded that neither police officer had suffered a legally cognizable injury when the plaque was installed.

She also rejected the officers’ arguments that the lack of individual recognition for their service exacerbated the psychological trauma they experienced after January 6. The plaintiffs argued that this also encouraged others to harass them and diminish their actions. The judge acknowledged their personal connection to the memorial but stressed that an interest in how their service is recognized alone is insufficient for a lawsuit.

In 2022, President Joe Biden signed a law providing for the installation, within a year, of a plaque honoring law enforcement officers who defended the Capitol. It was installed only in March 2026.