Biden awards medals to Jan. 6 first responders on 2nd anniversary of riot
US President Joe Biden speaks on the second anniversary of the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2023. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images
President Biden on Friday awarded Presidential Citizens Medals to 12 individuals who "made exemplary contributions to our democracy" around the time of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Driving the news: Biden bestowed the medals — one of the highest civilian honors — during a ceremony on the two-year anniversary of the Capitol riot. Recipients include members of the Capitol Police, Metropolitan Police, election workers, and state and local officials.
- It marked the first time Biden has awarded the Citizens Medal.
What they're saying: "History will remember your names. It'll remember your courage. It'll remember your bravery. It'll remember your extraordinary commitments to your fellow Americans," Biden said Friday.
Details: The recipients “demonstrated courage and selflessness during a moment of peril for our nation,” a White House official previously told Axios.
- Among the honorees were Capitol Police officers Harry Dunn, Caroline Edwards, and Eugene Goodman, as well as Capitol Police Sergeant Aquilino Gonell.
- Metropolitan police officer Daniel Hodges and retired Metropolitan police officer Michael Fanone were also recognized.
- U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who suffered two strokes and died of natural causes the day after the Capitol attack, was posthumously honored at the White House ceremony.
- Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers were among the other honorees.
- Ruby Freeman and her daughter Shaye Moss, who served as election workers in Georgia's Fulton County during the 2020 election, and Al Schmidt, a city commissioner on the Philadelphia County Board of Elections during that time, rounded out the list of 12 honorees.
- The late Capitol Police officer Howard Liebengood and Metropolitan Police Officer Jeffrey Smith, who both died by suicide after responding to the insurrection, were also posthumously recognized.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional developments.