“Being close was very scary,” said one Capitol Hill resident. Some D.C. residents, remembering Jan. 6, are nervous as they prepare for Election Day 2024. News4’s Mark Segraves reports.
Officials in the District are getting ready for the looming general election, prepping for everything from peaceful celebrations to a repeat of Jan. 6, 2021.
Some of the people who live near the Capitol are also preparing. That includes one family that's taking a pretty drastic step to avoid any trouble.
On Tuesday, a few blocks from the Capitol, nearby neighbors celebrated the beautiful fall day by walking their dogs and taking their children out to play -- despite growing concerns about what could happen between Election Day on Nov. 5 and Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.
Cassie Miller lives in that neighborhood, blocks from the U.S. Capitol, with her husband and their young son. It's the same home where they lived on Jan. 6, 2021.
"Being close was very scary," Miller said. "We've got a young son now too. That makes it a little bit different. I think really just concerns for him, you know, the multiple assassination attempts now. I think you know that the violence possibility has grown."
She's not the only neighbor with concerns. Another resident preferred not to show her face or share her name with News4.
"I am concerned about, you know, my safety, obviously. In this neighborhood close to Capitol Hill, that people may become violent against our property, obviously against people, most importantly," she said.
Miller is so concerned about what could happen around the Capitol that she and her husband made a major decision.
"We've decided to move out of Capitol Hill, just based on concerns for Jan. 6 and any events that may happen around that time, having lived through it the first time," Miller said.
After years of calling Capitol Hill home, she and her family moved on Tuesday.
"I think the -- the unrest last time, you know, it wasn't really as organized as it is now. And so we decided we'd rather be safe than sorry," Miller said.
D.C. Chief of Police Pamela Smith said she has recruited about 4,000 police officers from across the country who will be sworn in to help with Inauguration Day security.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is also concerned, and on Tuesday she and her team briefed the D.C. Council on security plans from Election Day until the inauguration.
That included the possibility of requesting National Guard troops.
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"We have not yet made a request, but we have been actively involved with DOD and with how that planning happens," Bowser said. "And when we have a specific request, we will advance it. We may even do something that we haven't done, is kind of advance a preliminary request so that they can start planning. And if we need to dial it up or dial it back, we'll do that."
