this post was submitted on 25 Oct 2023
247 points (96.3% liked)

politics

19145 readers
5010 users here now

Welcome to the discussion of US Politics!

Rules:

  1. Post only links to articles, Title must fairly describe link contents. If your title differs from the site’s, it should only be to add context or be more descriptive. Do not post entire articles in the body or in the comments.

Links must be to the original source, not an aggregator like Google Amp, MSN, or Yahoo.

Example:

  1. Articles must be relevant to politics. Links must be to quality and original content. Articles should be worth reading. Clickbait, stub articles, and rehosted or stolen content are not allowed. Check your source for Reliability and Bias here.
  2. Be civil, No violations of TOS. It’s OK to say the subject of an article is behaving like a (pejorative, pejorative). It’s NOT OK to say another USER is (pejorative). Strong language is fine, just not directed at other members. Engage in good-faith and with respect! This includes accusing another user of being a bot or paid actor. Trolling is uncivil and is grounds for removal and/or a community ban.
  3. No memes, trolling, or low-effort comments. Reposts, misinformation, off-topic, trolling, or offensive. Similarly, if you see posts along these lines, do not engage. Report them, block them, and live a happier life than they do. We see too many slapfights that boil down to "Mom! He's bugging me!" and "I'm not touching you!" Going forward, slapfights will result in removed comments and temp bans to cool off.
  4. Vote based on comment quality, not agreement. This community aims to foster discussion; please reward people for putting effort into articulating their viewpoint, even if you disagree with it.
  5. No hate speech, slurs, celebrating death, advocating violence, or abusive language. This will result in a ban. Usernames containing racist, or inappropriate slurs will be banned without warning

We ask that the users report any comment or post that violate the rules, to use critical thinking when reading, posting or commenting. Users that post off-topic spam, advocate violence, have multiple comments or posts removed, weaponize reports or violate the code of conduct will be banned.

All posts and comments will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. This means that some content that violates the rules may be allowed, while other content that does not violate the rules may be removed. The moderators retain the right to remove any content and ban users.

That's all the rules!

Civic Links

Register To Vote

Citizenship Resource Center

Congressional Awards Program

Federal Government Agencies

Library of Congress Legislative Resources

The White House

U.S. House of Representatives

U.S. Senate

Partnered Communities:

News

World News

Business News

Political Discussion

Ask Politics

Military News

Global Politics

Moderate Politics

Progressive Politics

UK Politics

Canadian Politics

Australian Politics

New Zealand Politics

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., indicated Wednesday that he will plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge over pulling a fire alarm in a congressional building on Capitol Hill last month.

Bowman has agreed to pay the maximum fine of $1,000 for one misdemeanor count of falsely pulling a fire alarm — a charge that carries a maximum penalty of six months in jail. He will also provide a formal apology to Capitol Police.

“I am responsible for activating a fire alarm, I will be paying the fine issued, and look forward to these charges being ultimately dropped," Bowman said in a statement Wednesday.

all 26 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] RadicalEagle@lemmy.world 28 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Really uncool move. It's crazy how people pull stunts like this. It also frustrates me seeing this type of behavior from people in positions of authority.

[–] money_loo@lemmy.world 59 points 1 year ago (3 children)

I mean, he did it by accident in a building entirely separate from the voting. This whole thing is just another case of republicans blowing things way out of proportion for their benefit.

Basically, propaganda.

[–] paultimate14@lemmy.world 40 points 1 year ago

Also he voted FOR the bill they accused him of trying to sabotage.

[–] RadicalEagle@lemmy.world 19 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I haven't seen the security footage myself, but the article indicates he had an opportunity to tell uniformed officers that he accidentally pulled the alarm but chose not to. It seems like something he did out of frustration, not incompetence. Of course it's impossible to prove intent, but the choice to not report it or explain the situation can't be overlooked. "It's not the crime, it's the cover up."

In a charging affidavit released Wednesday, an investigator said he had reviewed security camera footage and that Bowman can be seen pushing multiple doors that would not open before he looked at the emergency fire alarm pull station "and upon seeing it, he reached out and pulled the fire alarm down."

Bowman can also be seen "jogging" as he exits the building and does not stop to say anything to uniformed officers he passes as he enters the Capitol minutes later, according to the affidavit. It also said the building was evacuated for about 90 minutes before it was reopened after no threat was identified.

[–] rhythmisaprancer@kbin.social -2 points 1 year ago

Ya I would really like to see the footage. From the description the article, it seems pretty hard to say it was purely an accident.

A censure might be a bit much, tho.

[–] aidan@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

he did it by accident

Do you have a source for that?

[–] money_loo@lemmy.world 17 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The article you didn’t read sources straight from the one responsible.

In a statement hours after the incident, Bowman said he activated the alarm by mistake after having come across a door that was typically open for votes but would not open that day.

“I am embarrassed to admit that I activated the fire alarm, mistakenly thinking it would open the door. I regret this and sincerely apologize for any confusion this caused,” he said at the time.

[–] TheGoldenV@sh.itjust.works 5 points 1 year ago

You know I agree with you. It would be just swell if these people could just do the work and perform honorably.

On the other hand if I was this guy and seeing the shit going down on the other side. Not saying it’s right, but I’d tell them to suck my dick and prove it was me. ( I know there’s video and I’d still walk that line).

This shit is very frustrating.

[–] EatYouWell@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

He did it to stop the Republicans from forcing a vote on the budget without allowing anyone enough time to actually read it.

[–] Nougat@kbin.social 6 points 1 year ago

Equal opportunity: If the punishment is a fine, it's only illegal for poor people.

[–] autotldr@lemmings.world 5 points 1 year ago

This is the best summary I could come up with:


Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., indicated Wednesday that he will plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge over pulling a fire alarm in a congressional building on Capitol Hill last month.

“I am responsible for activating a fire alarm, I will be paying the fine issued, and look forward to these charges being ultimately dropped," Bowman said in a statement Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the D.C. Attorney General's Office said in a separate statement that Bowman "is pleading guilty and has agreed to pay the maximum fine."

The alarm was set off Sept. 30 in the Cannon House Office Building as Republican lawmakers sought to kickoff a vote on a spending measure to keep the government open.

In a statement Wednesday, Capitol Police said the investigation was complete and a probable cause arrest warrant had been submitted to the D.C. Attorney General's Office.

Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., who serves as secretary for the House Republican conference, wrote on X that she planned to introduce a resolution to censure Bowman and remove him from all committee assignments for the remainder of the 118th Congress for activating the alarm.


The original article contains 577 words, the summary contains 184 words. Saved 68%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

[–] bquintb@midwest.social 1 points 1 year ago
[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

Well, it wasn't a mistake.

Weird.

[–] 18_24_61_b_17_17_4@lemmy.world -1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I thought people stopped pulling the fire alarm in like 7th grade.

[–] Uncle_Bagel@midwest.social 0 points 1 year ago (2 children)

He didn't pull a red handle fore alarm like you see on a wall. He opened a door that is hooked up to a fire alarm. He claimed the door ir usually wide open and he had no idea that openeing the door would set of an alarm.

[–] PupBiru@kbin.social 9 points 1 year ago

i read this quote further down the thread:

In a charging affidavit released Wednesday, an investigator said he had reviewed security camera footage and that Bowman can be seen pushing multiple doors that would not open before he looked at the emergency fire alarm pull station “and upon seeing it, he reached out and pulled the fire alarm down.”

seems like he was pissed off that he couldn’t exit the building so pulled the fire alarm to release the doors

Um, yeah, he did pull a fire alarm like you see on a wall. Then he ran instead of apologizing for it. A former principal should know a thing or two about fire alarms.