Months After Alleged Attack By Bucks County Man, Capitol Police Officer Still Suffering From Injuries

Tom Sofield•

Ryan Samsel walking on the Capitol on January 6.

A federal police officer told a court through a statement Friday that she is still suffering physical and psychological injuries from an alleged violent attack by a Bristol Borough man during the January 6 insurrection.

The female U.S. Capitol police officer said Ryan Stephen Samsel, 37, “purposely” broke through law enforcement barriers at the U.S. Capitol and injured her.

The FBI has alleged the officer was injured when Samsel attacked her, causing her to fall and strike her head on outdoor steps. The officer was rescued by fellow cops and reported to be in a semi-conscious state following the assault. Hours later, she passed out due to her injuries and was taken to a hospital. She was determined to have suffered a concussion.

After the officer was knocked to the ground, Samsel is alleged to have picked her up and said: “We don’t have to hurt you. Why are you standing in our way?”

The officer, who suffered a brain injury that leads to random fainting, has not returned to duty full time. She noted in her statement to the federal court that she has missed funerals for officers and other key moments.

“You have stolen moments away from me that I can’t get back … You stole months of me working alongside this country’s most dedicated police officers,” she said.

The officer’s comments came a hearing Friday afternoon where Samsel was seeking a release from federal custody.

The federal government opposed his release and so did the officer, whose name was not mentioned.

“When will we be set free?” the officer asked in her statement, further asking when she would be free of her brain injury.

“No more women should have to fear injury at his hands,” the officer said in her statement.

The comment pointed to Samsel’s history of attacking women over the years that has been raised by federal authorities.

At the end of the hearing that was held via voice conferencing from Washington D.C., the U.S. district judge pushed a decision on Samsel’s potential release from federal custody to a future hearing.

Even if Samsel is released from federal custody, he would be remanded to Pennsylvania Department of Corrections’ custody until at least April 2022 due to an outstanding state parole detainer.

CNN reported the hearing was the first one where prosecutors have read an extensive statement from an injured officer in court. There are currently 450 active cases for people charged with taking part in the attack that rocked the nation.

Samsel was among the first rioters to make their way past security barricades and push toward the Capitol, federal authorities said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney April Russo said during the hearing the federal government has serious concerns about any release of Samsel.

“There is definitely a concern about a certain witness who provided information on Mr. Samsel,” she said. “The government not comfortable with [Samsel] being out in the public.”

Samsel’s attorney, Elisabeth Pasqualini, raised questions about the defendent receiving proper medical care while in federal custody. She supported the move to state custody and then a transfer back to federal custody when needed.

Samsel was allegedly attacked and “severely” injured in a Washington D.C. jail in March by a corrections officer. She said the attack left him with injuries that are in addition to existing conditions which have not been properly treated.

In addition to breaking the police line and attacking the officer, Samsel has also been accused of confronting other officers and attempting to steal gear from a uniformed U.S. Capitol police officer, the FBI said.

Samsel has been in federal custody since the end of January, when he was arrested in Lower Bucks County by a task force made up of local police and federal special agents.

The U.S. Department of Justice said this week that Samsel is among “most dangerous category of offenders” connected to the Capitol attack.

Russo listed in a court filing Samsel’s “extensive criminal history of assaultive and violent behavior:”

Samsel attempted to pull someone off the road because they owned him $60. He punched through the woman’s windshield and threatened to kill her, prosecutors said.
Samsel reportedly got into a man’s car and started hitting him the face in 2007. The man was left missing teeth and bloodied, according to a police report obtained by federal officials.
Samsel was convicted of simple assault and reckless endangerment in 2009 after he held a victim against her will for five hours, choking her to the point of unconsciousness, pushing her, beating her, and chipping her teeth, prosecutors said.
In 2011, Samsel was convicted of simple assault, reckless endangerment, disorderly conduct, and unlawful restraint for choking and attacking his pregnant girlfriend. He was reported to have smashed a hot pizza in the woman’s face, beat the woman, poured a beer over her head, and eventually threw her into the canal. While in the water, Samsel held her head under. She was eventually able to escape and found a police officer. Samsel tried to interfere with testimony about the attack, prosecutors said.
Samsel was convicted of simple assault again in 2015 after a new victim came forward to state he choked her to the point of unconsciousness. He also was accused of hitting her once so hard that she had a hematoma.
In 2019, another woman alleged Samsel choked her to the point of unconsciousness and broke into her house and assaulted her. She also said Samsel raped her multiple times and violated a restraining order.

“Samsel has an extensive history of violent and assaultive behavior and of intimidation of witnesses. Reviewing the police reports from these prior incidents reveals a pattern of Samsel not only threatening to kill others, but coming extremely close to actually doing so. The courts have repeatedly failed the public and these victims when it comes to Samsel. No condition or combination of conditions that could ensure the safety of the community if he were to be released. This Court should deny Samsel’s motion,” Russo wrote in a memo to the court.

Samsel traveled to the U.S. Capitol in January with a Bristol Township woman, who was also charged by federal authorities.

Samsel has been charged with forcibly assaulting, resisting, opposing, impeding, intimidating, or interfering with a federal agent while they were engaged in their official duties; committed or attempted to commit any act to obstruct, impede, or interfere with any fireman or law enforcement officer lawfully engaged in the lawful performance of official duties; and obstructed, influenced, or impeded any official proceeding or attempted to do so.

FBI Capitol Riot Investigators Arrest Another Person From Bucks County

Wife’s Facebook Posts Helped FBI Nab Bucks County Man On Capitol Riot-Related Charges

Lawyer For Bucks Co. Man Accused Of Capitol Riot Assault Claims He Was Beaten By Prison Staff

Bucks County Woman Charged As Part Of Capitol Insurrection Investigation