Republican members of the House of Representatives held a press conference outside of the Justice Department building on Tuesday to discuss the jail conditions and prosecution of individuals being detained in connection with the January 6 riot at the US Capitol
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th July, 2021) Republican members of the House of Representatives held a press conference outside of the Justice Department building on Tuesday to discuss the jail conditions and prosecution of individuals being detained in connection with the January 6 riot at the US Capitol.
Representatives Marjorie Taylor-Greene, Matt Gaetz, Louis Gohmert and others spoke about their concerns regarding reports of January 6 detainees being abused and placed in solitary confinement in addition to being denied due process.
"We ought to make sure that [detainees] are treated fairly when they get to jail. We have been asking for months for meetings with the Attorney General. We have asked for letters to the DC jail and been refused ... We still need to know: Do we have political prisoners here in America or not? And we can't get an answer," Representative Louis Gohmert said.
The speakers were forced to talk over the sound of a loud sports whistle being blown by a protester in the audience. Taylor-Greene said at the conclusion of the press conference that they were "not deterred" by such actions.
Following the press conference, a group of protesters also forced the lawmakers to hastily leave the scene as security attempted to keep the peace.
The event took place amid the first days of hearings for the select committee formed to investigate the January 6 incident, which included testimony from Capitol Police officers. One officer described the scene as a "medieval battlefield" while another said that even his experience in the Iraqi war zone did not prepare him for what he saw that day.
