By Andy Sullivan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -District of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine on Tuesday announced a civil lawsuit against extremist groups the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers over the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Racine told reporters the defendants had caused physical and financial harm to Washington and its residents, adding that the city will seek “severe” financial penalties against the defendants.
The lawsuit seeks to recover the costs of deploying hundreds of city police officers to defend the Capitol against the attack as well as medical and paid-leave costs incurred afterward.
It also brings civil assault and battery charges against the two organizations, along with 30 named and 50 unnamed people that it alleges were involved in the assault.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; writing by Chris Gallagher; editing by Susan Heavey and Mark Porter)
