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House Dem aide out of job after Capitol arrest
 [Axios] A staffer for House Administration Committee ranking member Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) is no longer employed after he was arrested Monday morning on suspicion of bringing ammunition into a U.S. House office building.
Why it matters: It's the second time in three years that a congressional staffer has been arrested and charged with possessing ammunition at the Capitol.
The last incident, in December 2023, prompted a serious reckoning over Capitol security procedures after Capitol Police took 12 minutes to track down the staffer, who also had a handgun.
Driving the news: A Capitol Police spokesperson identified the staffer as 38-year-old Michael Hopkins, Morelle's communications director.
Capitol Police searched Hopkins' bag after it went through an X-ray machine and found 11 rounds of ammunition and four magazines, the spokesperson said.
Hopkins "told the officers that he forgot the ammunition was in the bag," the spokesperson said.
He faces charges of unlawful possession of ammunition, including one charge of possession of a high-capacity magazine.
The latest: "In response to this morning's incident, Mr. Hopkins is no longer employed by Representative Morelle's office effective immediately," Morelle's chief of staff Jo Stiles said in a statement Monday afternoon.
Posted by: Besoeker 2024-12-03 |
