Child visiting Capitol found loaded gun in John Boehner’s bathroom: report

A young child found a loaded handgun in Speaker John Boehner’s bathroom on Capitol Hill, in one of at least three instances when Capitol police misplaced their Glocks this year, according to a Roll Call analysis.

A 7- or 8-year-old child visiting with his parents found the loaded Glock after a member of the security detail for Mr. Boehner allegedly left the firearm in the bathroom of the Speaker’s Suite on March 24, Roll Call reported.

In an earlier instance, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s security detail allegedly left his Glock and magazine stuffed in the toilet seat cover dispenser of a Capitol Visitor Center bathroom stall. It was found by a Center employee on Jan. 29, Roll Call reported.

And April 16, a third Glock was found lying in plain sight by a janitor cleaning a bathroom at the Capitol Police headquarters building on D Street NE, the report said.

The department’s Office of Professional Responsibility reportedly recommended six days of suspension without pay for the officer involved in the Jan. 29 incident, but the latter two are still being investigated.

“The Department takes very seriously all breaches of Department rules and has established policies that address such matters,” said Lt. Kimberly Schneider, a Capitol Police spokeswoman, said in an email to Roll Call.

“Each disciplinary matter is thoroughly investigated and reviewed, employees are held accountable for their conduct, and they are provided due process in adjudicating these matters,” she said. “Depending on the nature and seriousness of the violation, an employee’s record, and other required considerations, an appropriate penalty is applied, up to and including termination of employment. As a matter of policy, the Department does not routinely discuss internal personnel matters, in order to maintain the integrity of the Department.”

The offices of Mr. Boehner and Mr. McConnell did not issue a comment to the paper.