Overview
- The complaint, filed Friday in the Middle District of Florida’s Ocala division, seeks $18.405 million for 46 people whose prior federal injury claims are unresolved and asks for a class that could grow to hundreds or thousands.
- It alleges U.S. Capitol Police and D.C.’s Metropolitan Police fired tear gas, pepper spray, flash-bang and sting-ball grenades, pepper balls, and impact rounds without warnings into a crowd on the Capitol’s west side.
- Plaintiffs say they suffered chemical burns, concussive injuries, and emotional distress and they assert the crowd was peaceful and did not intentionally harm officers.
- Named and potential class members include pardoned Proud Boys such as Dominic Pezzola and Christopher Worrell, lead plaintiff Alan E. Fischer, and attendees who were never charged after Trump issued mass clemency on January 20, 2025.
- The Justice Department and both police agencies have not commented, and prior Jan. 6 cases — including a nearly $5 million settlement with Ashli Babbitt’s estate and reports of about 140 officers injured — frame the legal and factual fights to come.