United States Capitol Police USCP

Congress created the Capitol Police in 1828, after a man assaulted President John Quincy Adams's son and secretary in the Capitol Rotunda. It began as a small night watch and grew into a full police department of more than two thousand sworn officers and civilian staff, with jurisdiction over the Capitol grounds and a surrounding zone of Capitol Hill. It protects members of Congress, their families, and congressional leaders, and investigates threats against them, which have risen sharply in recent years.

Unlike most police forces, it answers to Congress itself. The Capitol Police Board, made up of the House and Senate Sergeants at Arms and the Architect of the Capitol, with the chief as a nonvoting member, oversees the department and appoints the chief. Its budget is set in the legislative branch appropriations bill, and it is overseen by the House Administration and Senate Rules committees and its own inspector general.

Two attacks reshaped the force. In July 1998 a gunman killed Officer Jacob Chestnut and Detective John Gibson inside the Capitol. On January 6, 2021, rioters overwhelmed officers and breached the building during the counting of electoral votes, injuring well over a hundred officers. Investigations found failures in intelligence and planning, and the department's chief and both Sergeants at Arms resigned. Afterward Congress increased the force's budget and staffing, gave the chief new authority to request National Guard help in emergencies, and the department opened field offices outside Washington to handle threats against members.