Capitol Police remove man from suspicious vehicle outside Supreme Court
Capitol Police removed a man from a suspicious vehicle in front of the Supreme Court on Tuesday morning in a roughly hourlong incident, one day after the court convened for a new session.
According to Capitol Police deputy chief Jason Bell, who served as the field commander responding to the situation, a man illegally parked his car in front of the Supreme Court around 9:30 a.m. and declined to engage with police officers.
“The man refused to talk, made a statement to the effect of ‘time for talking is done,’ ” Bell said at a news conference afterward.
A notice from the Capitol Police’s Twitter account shortly before 10 a.m. urged people to stay away from the area, which is just across the street from the Capitol.
The suspect, identified as Dale Paul Melvin, 55, of Kimball, Mich., has been arrested on suspicion of failure to obey and assault on a police officer.
A statement from the Capitol Police later Tuesday said that the suspect previously came to the Capitol complex in August “and made concerning statements.”
A Facebook profile matching the suspect’s name, birthdate and place of residence includes some past posts that are critical of Democrats and express support for conservative positions.
One post, for example, shares a meme of former President Clinton with the words: “I chose other women over Hillary” and “you should too.”
Another Facebook post shares a list from a conservative comedian that reads, “Here is all I want”: “Obama: Gone! Borders: Closed! Language: English! Culture: U.S. Constitution & the Bill of Rights! Drug Free: Mandatory Drug Screening Before Welfare! No Freebies To: Non-Citizens!”
That Aug. 19 security threat resulted in a tense five-hour standoff before the suspect finally surrendered to law enforcement.
The suspect claiming to have a bomb in the August vehicle incident also posted a livestream to Facebook during the standoff, in which he declared that “the revolution is on” while assailing President Biden and other Democrats.
The Capitol Police has had to respond to numerous security incidents since then over the course of a year in which threats against members of Congress are at an all-time high.