A veteran Capitol Police officer who helped repel the attack on the US Capitol on January 6 2021 has filed a discrimination lawsuit alleging that she was denied senior promotions as part of an effort to roll back racial and gender diversity within the force.
Carneysha Mendoza, a Black woman and Army veteran, claims in a complaint lodged in Federal District Court in Washington that she was overlooked for the post of deputy chief and three assistant chief positions despite 24 years’ service and supervisory experience across four of the department’s six bureaus.
She alleges that the department is “engaged in an effort to reverse diversity, equity and inclusion gains and eliminate diversity in leadership within the department”. The claims have not been tested in court.
Two of the roles, according to the complaint, went to officers who had previously faced serious disciplinary action. Mendoza alleges that one was a white male officer disciplined for “serious offenses including drunk driving” while on duty and overtime fraud.
Mendoza told the House committee investigating the January 6 attack that she had arrived at work early that day and “jumped on line” alongside colleagues as rioters tried to force their way into the Capitol. She sustained chemical burns to her face during the confrontation.
Capitol Police diversity office dismantled
The lawsuit also alleges that Chief Michael G Sullivan dismantled the department’s office of equity and inclusion in August last year, two months after taking office.
Mendoza claims that a facilities employee was later sent to remove and destroy materials produced by the office, including documents kept in her own office. When she questioned Mr Sullivan, the complaint says, he told her that the materials had been ordered to be removed overnight, when nobody would be present.
A Capitol Police spokesman, Tim Barber, declined to comment on Mendoza’s case or on other discrimination claims brought by employees against the department.
The force has paid nearly $1 million since 2022 to settle employment-related claims brought under legislation protecting congressional staff and employees, according to public reports and court records.
The latest lawsuit comes as the department faces difficulties recruiting and retaining personnel. Mr Sullivan told lawmakers at a budget hearing in March that staff shortages affected “all operational units”. The force has requested more than $1 billion for the next financial year, representing a 20 per cent increase.
Earlier discrimination cases involving Capitol Police
The department has faced several other discrimination findings in recent years. In one case last year, a Washington jury found that Mauricia VanMeter, a Black female officer, had been removed from a K-9 training programme because of her gender.
Court testimony indicated that male officers were advanced despite failing to identify explosive materials during examinations, while video footage showed VanMeter performing better than some of her male colleagues. A jury initially awarded her $850,000, but the sum was reduced to $300,000 to comply with a statutory limit.
Kenneth Hill, a Capitol Police K-9 trainer, testified that one male officer should have been disqualified after making several mistakes during a certification test involving the detection of explosives or chemicals. Instead, the officer was certified, and Mr Hill acknowledged intervening to prevent further errors.
He also agreed that part of another examination had been “completely reorganized” after a male officer’s dog failed an odour-recognition test in a warehouse. Mr Hill said the dog had been trained to detect improvised explosive devices in luggage, rather than odours in that type of setting.
In a separate case concluded in 2023, an administrative hearing officer and an appeals board found that Capitol Police had discriminated and retaliated against Juan Cobbin, a Black K-9 training supervisor.
Mr Cobbin had complained about “racially tinged” emails written by white K-9 officers acting as union members. The documents criticised Black supervisors, described him as “a joke” and questioned whether department leaders should listen to him on canine deployments during Black Lives Matter protests and the January 6 insurrection.
He was removed as head of K-9 training and transferred to a non-K-9 post at the Library of Congress. The findings said he had been replaced by a white officer with “objectively inferior qualifications”, and he was awarded $125,000 for emotional pain and suffering, together with about $30,000 in economic damages.
