I can tell you a absolutely as soon as you start saying it, because

it was the time I felt like I had a shockwave go through my body.

I'm sitting in a chair at the command center.

I'm at the front of this, large command center.

We have video screens up on the front.

I'm at a U-shaped desk.

I'm watching all the video screens, at, the front.

It's probably about 1253.

The, riot began and I saw my officers quickly being overpowered.

picked up the phone, called, you know what?

Luckily, first call was the MPD and they sent me some assistance right away.

But by law, I have to get permission to bring in, federal resources and

resources for my men and women.

So I called the Capitol Police Board, which I'm still by law, even in

emergency, I have to get, permission, called speaker Pelosi, Sergeant At Arms.

He, and he had permit, he had the ability to give me permission, but he wouldn't.

He wanted to run it up the chain.

I couldn't believe it.

I've got liaisons from the Capitol Police Board sitting right behind me

watching the same thing I'm watching.

I can't get permission to bring in any federal resources from my officers

watching them being, beaten, struck, protesters, running past them.

I call the Senate Sergeant At Arms and I get denied again repeatedly.

Before January 6th, 2021, Steven Sund spent 30 years preparing for

the worst days in American history.

This conversation begins before the moment that defined him along with many others,

and ends where his authority disappeared.

I've been thinking.

That a lot of the guests, Steve, that we have on Heroes Behind the Badge,

they are known for that one day.

I think we talked about that in previous interviews.

Oh, yeah.

Steve Sund, he's that January 6th guy, and I've always felt that's not

totally fair, because in your case.

There's a 30 year career that very few people could ever endure.

policing in DC as we've talked, is like nothing else in the world.

That is a unique policing situation.

You were chasing kidnappers, homicide offenders, cop killers for years.

You helped plan 30.

Special national security events, 30, including five, inaugurations.

And on September 11th, you were asked to go to the White House to consult

with the White House in Secret Service to coordinate a response for 9/11.

you worked alongside Secret Service for years.

every living president you have helped protect.

You you've had barricade situations, you know all the things that real cops do.

You had all that, and sometimes that gets lost and I don't

want that to get lost today.

the hostage rescues, the standoffs, responded to the active shooter, like the

congressional shooting situation at the na at, the baseball field, the navy yard.

So today I wanna talk a little bit about the man behind the badge.

It's about what actually happened in your time in the complicated

policing atmosphere of Washington dc trying to stand between order

and chaos, but all the time in Washington dc the history is watching.

History is watching, so I thought I'd ask you.

one particular question and,

as, history tries to reduce your career, your reputation to a single day.

Okay.

What do you wish that people understood about the real man behind the badge?

So I'll, take this, before I go into my personal story, I think you have

what, 879,000 police officers out there.

Yes.

These are men and women that have raised the right hand sworn an oath.

my story is gonna be just one of those, and when you think about it, I was just,

I was just thinking about what you went over and picturing a lot of the things

that I've, I had been involved with and, it's been an incredible career.

But, every police officer's gonna have just incredible

stories that they're gonna.

That they're gonna have with them, they're gonna go home.

And ultimately, when you think about it, you go back and, when we're long gone,

and people are looking back on it, what, will they remember of, the individuals.

and for me it's, my personal, everybody becomes a police officer for different

reasons, but for me it was a lot of.

Just personal satisfaction, and a lot of personal satisfaction

that I've gotten out of it.

for me, when I, look back and I run into people now, and it's

really interesting 'cause you had mentioned that, oh, you're, that guy.

there were so many times that right after January 6th, first, year,

and a half, you'd run into people and as soon as they found out,

you get this funny look like, oh.

Yeah, you're him and men, the pop, conversation would change.

Yeah.

That has taken a 180 degree change with me.

Which is really interesting.

I have people go, oh wow.

Hey, I've heard about you.

you're that guy.

Wow.

Tell me you are that.

Tell me what it was really like.

and it's just a complete difference.

there was times I was sitting in this exact chair, think

about it, we're five years now.

Four years, four years ago, and it was pretty damn dark.

I'd lost friends.

I was trying to figure out what's, what's going on.

I'm, putting this after action together and, trying to figure out what happened.

never thought I'd get to the point where we are now complete, like I

said, 180 and change, where, now I'm being, asked to speak on, crime, Around

the United States crime globally.

I just, interviewed on the, Bondi Beach.

Oh yeah.

the, you have the terrorist attacks, taking place over overseas are

some of the Christmas markets.

so it's taking the, that experience that you just talked

about and now relating it to.

To bigger issues.

I was just involved in the, US Saudi Investment Forum,

2025 at the Kennedy Center.

November asked to do a security plan for part of the, the,

event, which was, something else.

Wow.

it's, so you're seeing people now bypassed.

That guy from January 6th, and now they realize what happened.

They realize the efforts you took and they're like, Hey, that's the guy we want.

That's so it's changed.

So what do I want, people to, to take away Yeah.

Is, a, real understanding of what happened.

Take the time, research it.

Don't believe one side or the other.

Whatever I tell you, go back.

Research what I'm telling you.

do your research and make a critical decision.

Make a informed decision on, what you're finding out.

Now, I tell this to students nowadays when I talk to, classes.

it's important that people learn, how to think critically because.

Honestly, too many people pay attention to, social media and make a decision

on social media without analyzing the information they're getting.

Yeah.

And then they jump to these conclusions that just, you know,

in increases the division we're dealing with in the country.

wow.

Ultimately, study the facts and, let the facts speak for themselves.

and that's enough for me.

That's a great answer.

Yeah.

Is there any part of your career, as you look back on your highly successful

career, is there any part of the career that really stays with you?

That, when the noise finally quiets down, everything settles down, is there

any one or two things that you can point to and say, yeah, that defined me.

Wow, that, defined me.

The, I'll tell you the call from the White House, we had

the, first plane hit on, 9/11.

Yeah.

I got a call to remember Steve Woodard.

sad to say that, a special agent passed, away.

Yeah.

and then we're on the phone when the second plane hit and that's

when they called me down, to go to their emergency operations center.

that is something I'd always, I'll always, take with me and remember.

That's something.

But it's interesting and, probably every cop has this, where you

drive through the area that you.

Been assigned to your career and you drive through and you look, go, Hey, that

happened here, or that happened here.

We had, I don't know if you guys remember years ago, we had a guy that

drove a tractor into Washington DC yes.

Into reflecting Pond.

And held DC downtown DC literally 150 yards from the White

House hostage for three days.

Yes, I remember that.

yeah, we were involved with that with Park Police.

it was my, my SWAT team when I was working with Park Police, trying to,

work a, a. Peaceful resolution to that, which we ultimately did, but

I couldn't believe morning, after morning waking up and going, wow,

we're still dealing with tractor guy.

so there's just different areas I look at as I drive through the city, whether

it's Anacostia, whether it's Martin Luther King Avenue, whether it's, 46, 46 place.

Wow.

That what a fun place where you just remember, as you're going

through, you remember the Chases, you remember the shootings.

And so it's just interesting stuff.

But there's a number of things I'll always think about.

Right after January 6th, the first, year and a half, you'd run into people and

as soon as they found out you get this funny look like, oh yeah, you're him

and the pop, conversation would change.

Yeah.

That has taken a 180 degree change with me, which is really interesting.

I have people go, oh wow.

Hey, I've heard about you.

You're, that guy.

Wow.

Tell me you're that guy.

Tell me what it was really like.

and it's just a complete difference.

there was times I was sitting in this exact chair.

think about it, we're five years now, four years, four years ago,

and it was pretty damn dark.

I'd lost friends.

I was trying to figure out what's, what's going on.

I'm, putting this after action together and, trying to figure out what happened.

Never, thought I'd get to the, point where, we are now complete, like I

said, 180 degree change, where, now I'm being, asked to speak on, crime,

Around the United States crime globally.

I was just, interviewed on the Bondi Beach, soul.

Oh yeah.

the, you have the terrorist attacks, taking place over overseas are

some of the Christmas markets.

so it's taking the, that experience that you just talked

about and now relating it to.

To bigger issues.

I was just involved in the, US Saudi Investment Forum,

2025 at the Kennedy Center.

November asked to do a security plan for part of the, the,

event, which was, something else.

Wow.

it's, so you're seeing people now bypassed.

That guy from January 6th, and now they realize what happened.

They realize the efforts you took and they're like, Hey, that's the guy we want.

Hey Steve.

we're doing this interview right around the five year anniversary of January

6th, 2021, the riot at the Capitol.

You were chief of police on that day, and you've written a book and

I, want our audience to understand that this is the definitive.

piece of work.

If you wanna know what really happened on January 6th, what

led up to it, the aftermath.

all the good things that happened that day, the heroism of, the Capitol police

and, other jurisdictions, and how they were able to protect the capitol and

prevent, any member of Congress or staff from being, injured or killed.

and I wanna get that out there.

First of all, because we're not gonna be able to cover

all the details in this book.

We've already interviewed you in a great three-part series a year ago.

About what happened on January 6th, and we talked about your book, but, in hindsight,

okay, here we are five years later.

I'd like you to just, reflect on January 6th, the lead up, the aftermath.

What was your toughest challenge, the toughest moment

that you faced on January 6th?

And then we'll talk about, some of the mistakes that were made in some

of the, lessons that we've learned.

What you've heard so far isn't the riot.

It's the moments before authority mattered most and failed to arrive.

In the next episode, we step back into the command center and ask the

question that still haunts this story, what happens when leaders are held

responsible but denied the power to act.