(Just the News) A door on the West side of the U.S. Capitol was left open and mostly unguarded for key moments during the Jan. 6 riot, allowing more than 300 people to enter the building unimpeded even as officers fought valiantly to keep protesters out of other sections of the official home of Congress, according to police security footage obtained by Just the News.
The footage — which confirms concerns first raised by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., two years ago — shows an episode in a narrow hallway in the middle of the Capitol that began around 2:30p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021 right after the first breaches were reported elsewhere in the landmark building.
Capitol Police officers usher a few intruders already inside the building through the non-public Upper West Terrace hallway and toward a fire evacuation door, which is clearly marked by a sign declaring it was an emergency exit, the footage shows.
“Emergency exit only,” the sign reads, instructing evacuees to “push until alarm sounds” and the “doors will unlock in 10 seconds.” After one person exits, the doors appear to open from inside as 309 individuals pass through it over a period of…