Seattle Cops Who Attended Jan. 6 Rally Ask Supreme Court to Keep Their Names Secret

Four Seattle police officers who went to Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally on January 6, 2021—the same day the Capitol was stormed—are now asking the U.S. Supreme Court to keep their names out of the public eye.

The officers, a mix of current and former members of the Seattle Police Department, originally sued the city to block the release of investigative records related to January 6 unless their names were redacted. But Washington state’s Supreme Court already shot that down earlier this year, ruling unanimously that the officers didn’t prove that releasing their names would violate their privacy.

Now, they’ve taken their case to the highest court in the country. In their petition, they argue that government agencies shouldn’t be allowed to force public employees to reveal their off-duty political activities—especially when those details might later be used to publicly shame them, even if they didn’t do anything wrong.

The officers, who filed the petition under the pseudonyms John Does 1, 2, 4, and 5, admit they were at Trump’s D.C. rally protesting the 2020 election results. But they’re adamant that they didn’t break any laws. In fact, Seattle’s Office of Police Accountability investigated and cleared them of any criminal or unprofessional behavior at the event.

That same investigation found two other Seattle officers had trespassed near the Capitol—those two were fired based on department policy violations. But for the rest, including the four petitioners, the probe determined they didn’t break department rules.

According to the petition, all six officers were interviewed during the internal investigation—and were forced to share their political views, why they attended the rally, and their personal take on what happened there. The officers say they had to comply under threat of losing their jobs.

Now, they’re fighting to keep the interview transcripts and related records from being publicly released without redactions. The people they’re going up against in court include the Seattle Police Department and Sam Sueoka, a former law student (now an attorney) who filed public records requests to access those documents during his time in law school.

Sueoka’s attorney, Neil Fox, told the Associated Press that his team is still reviewing the officers’ request for a stay.

Thanks for reading The Kicker! Let me know your thoughts below. Should the public be informed when law enforcement officers attend politically charged events like Jan. 6?

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