Interim Capitol Police chief plagued by Jan. 6, discipline probe, lack of rank-and-file confidence

Deputy Chief Sean Gallagher, newly elevated to interim chief on Monday by the Capitol Police Board, is haunted by criticisms over his handling of Jan. 6, his past disciplinary record, and a lack of confidence by the rank-and-file in his leadership. 

The department confirmed the appointment of Gallagher on Monday, following Chief Thomas Manger's retirement last month. Manger began his tenure after Chief Steven Sund resigned following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, after which the department faced widespread criticism for security failures. 

Gallagher, then-acting chief of uniformed operations, faced blistering criticism from a Capitol Police whistleblower shortly after the riot for failing to respond properly and for mishandling advanced intelligence. Gallagher’s role in the failures prompted members of the Capitol Police Union—the U.S. Capitol Police Labor Committee—to deliver a decisive "No Confidence" vote against Gallagher.

The new chief has also faced criticism for an internal affairs probe when he was a captain that found he submitted false timesheets and forged his boss's signature securing approval for overtime pay, more than a decade ago. 

The announcement of Gallagher’s interim appointment on Monday garnered sharp criticism from the department’s union chief over his leadership during the Capitol riot and his disciplinary record. 

“While the appointment is only temporary, our union did a vote of no confidence four years ago and Sean Gallagher received 84% for his leadership failures on J6, not to mention his discipline history,” Capitol Police Union president Gus Papathanasiou told Just the News. 

Lack of trust in leadership 

“I really can't understand how Congress would allow for these type of leaders to lead an agency that protects them and under his leadership with former Chief Manger they're dropping the hammer on officers out on suspension. All these years with lack of training and failed USCP leadership at the top has to end at some point. We need someone who will overturn officer morale and instill confidence within the department,” the police union's top cop continued. 

The Capitol Police rank-and-file expressed their disapproval of Gallagher and the rest of the department’s leadership in the wake of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. In February 2021, the police union called for its officers to assess the leadership of seven senior department leaders, including Gallagher and then-acting Chief Yogonanda Pittman. 

“The results of the No Confidence vote were decisive,” the union’s press release reads. Then-Acting Assistant Chief Gallagher received an 84% disapproval rating from the rank-and-file officers, a worrying lack of trust in a key department leader. 

One former officer who resigned after the January riot delivered a rank-and-file assessment of both Gallagher and Pittman’s leadership in a scathing whistleblower letter to Congress later that year. 

As reported by Politico, the letter accuses Gallagher and Pittman of deliberately opting not to assist officers under attack during the Capitol breach, and adds that Pittman deceived Congress on the matter of an intelligence report received by the Capitol Police prior to the January 6 riot. 

The same whistleblower, who was present in the USCP Command Center on Jan. 6, believed that Gallagher and Pittman had enough intelligence prior to the breach to justify deploying National Guard reinforcements at the closed Capitol, and to allow officers to use tough but non-lethal weapons on individuals trying to breach the complex. 

The whistleblower, however, said both Gallagher and Pittman were not eager to stop the violence once it had begun. "It is my allegation that these two with intent and malice opted to not try and assist the officers and officials, blame others for the failures, and chose to try and use this event for their own personal promotions. This was done not after the even[t] but while officers and officials were still fighting the demonstrators,” the unnamed whistleblower wrote. 

Gallagher's past catches up with him

Last year, congressional Republicans investigating the security failures of Jan. 6 uncovered a decade-old internal affairs probe into Gallagher which found that he submitted falsified timesheets to secure overtime pay, according to documentation of the 2013 investigation reviewed by Just the News last year. Neither the Capitol Police nor Gallagher responded to requests for comment on the findings at the time. 

The chairman who led that investigation, Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R-Ga., said that the Capitol Police Board should focus on reforming the Capitol Police and thoroughly vet any appointments. 

“During my in-depth investigation into the security failures at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, my subcommittee uncovered numerous incidents of concern within the Capitol Police. These concerns included operational failures, personal conduct issues, and systemic problems with equitable disciplinary actions,” Loudermilk told Just the News. 

“I believe there are significant reforms needed within the command level of the U.S. Capitol Police. The Capitol Police Board needs to look deeply into the conduct, performance, and disciplinary records of every applicant for chief before making an appointment, whether full-time or interim,” he continued. 

The internal affairs review concluded that Gallagher approved overtime for himself to which he was not entitled and thus "defraud[ed] the government" of $1,492.41, and that additional documents he signed for two subordinate lieutenants resulted “in a total loss to the government of more than $10,000," a Dec. 18, 2013, memorandum that a department review officer wrote to recommend disciplinary action reads.

“This offense is egregious and absent any mitigating factors warrants nothing less than termination. This offense was willful and frequent, occurring on eight occasions," the memo stated. "Captain Gallagher misrepresented his times, forged his supervisor’s signature on overtime authorization forms, falsified pay certification sheets, and forged his supervisor's signature on pay certification sheets to defraud the government for significant personal gain.”

The memo added, "He manipulated the Department's time and attendance procedures to circumvent 2 USC § 1933 which provides that an exempt employee's pay during any pay period cannot exceed the equivalent biweekly maximum pay which is set at 150% of the minimum rate for level 16 of the sworn pay scale.”

The reviewing officer in the case stated that Gallagher did not dispute the facts but claimed he did not know he was violating department policy. However, the investigator found this claim spurious, considering Gallagher was caught on at least one prior occasion forging his supervisor's signature without his supervisor’s permission, the documents show. 

The reviewing officer, a fellow captain, concluded that, because Gallagher had been rated as outstanding prior to the timesheet episode, he had actually worked the hours he put on the timesheets and was unlikely to repeat the offense, that he repay the money he improperly received and be demoted one rank to lieutenant for the violation, a potentially devastating punishment for a rising department star. 

Despite the recommendation of demotion, congressional Republicans who investigated the incident found no evidence Gallagher ever faced demotion for the episode, Just the News previously reported.