- The
Secret Service released a statement saying that an agency employee usedpepper spray onprotesters on June 1 ahead ofPresident Trump 's photo op in front of St John's Episcopal Church. - To make way for the president's photo op, law enforcement violently expelled peaceful protesters outside the White House with flash bang grenades and tear gas.
- The Secret Service previously denied that any official used pepper spray ahead of Trump's walk to the church.
- The photo op was highly controversial, with church leaders from across the country condemning Trump for the move.
The U.S. Secret Service admitted to using pepper spray on peaceful protesters on June 1 to clear a path for President Trump's walk to St John's Episcopal Church in Washington DC.
President Trump and his administration repeatedly denied allegations that any officials used tear gas on protesters ahead of the president's walk, despite a plethora of video footage, photographs, and witnesses attesting to the use of the chemical.
The Secret Service also initially denied the use of any tear gas at the event, but the organization changed its tune after an internal investigation.
The Secret Service released a statement on the matter on Twitter on Saturday.
—U.S. Secret Service (@SecretService) June 13, 2020
"The agency has learned that one agency employee used capsicum spray (i.e., pepper spray)" when securing the area near Lafayette Park, the statement read. The statement went on to say the spray was used in response "to an assaultive individual."
As Business Insider previously reported, Tim Murtaugh, the Trump campaign's communications director, claimed that pepper compound and smoke don't qualify as tear gas. But the CDC defines tear gas as "chemical compounds that temporarily make people unable to function by causing irritation to the eyes, mouth, throat, lungs, and skin."
Likewise, Attorney General William Barr argued that "pepper spray is not a chemical irritant," but PepperBell, the company that makes the bells used on June 1, advertises its products as "the most effective chemical irritant available."
Law enforcement's use of pepper spray on peaceful protesters was widely condemned, particularly as officials attacked two priests and other clergy members with pepper spray to clear the president's walking path.
However, Trump's evangelical base was thrilled by the photo op, seeing the president's walk as an act of bravery.
Trump had not commented on the Secret Service's statement at the time of writing. You can read the Secret Service's full statement here.
- Read more:
- Trump claims the pepper balls and smoke canisters police fired at peaceful protesters aren't tear gas. The CDC disagrees.
- AG Barr says pepper spray 'is not a chemical irritant.' But the company that makes pepper-spraying balls says otherwise.
- 'They turned holy ground into a battle ground': Clergy members say police expelled them from the grounds of St. John's Episcopal Church for Trump's photo op
- Trump's evangelical base is ecstatic over his bible photo op, which many other Christian leaders have condemned