When anybody who has 24/7 Secret Service protection (in this case the V.P) is present in a federal building, that building is made a restricted area. Which means that it is completely closed to the public and any government employee who does not have proper clearance. The Capitol Police do not have the power to change the designation and allow access to the public.
If there is some regulation to that affect, would people be expected to be familiar with that or would they reasonably rely on the authority and knowledge of the Capitol Police? Would some vague regulation with which few are familiar put them on notice?
Understand, this is a speculation on my part. I don’t know the details of what these police who are to be disciplined actually did.
This is what I read. In certain areas the Capitol Police were short handed to hold back the number of people who were at the doors and windows. Some were ordered to retreat their post in a effort to re-group. Because those officers were ordered to leave their post, I don’t believe that they can be held responsible. Now I didn’t hear that there were cases of the Police opening the doors and allowing folks in. But if they did, then I believe that they could be disciplined.
I did see a video of one Capitol Police Officer who when on the Senate floor and told the folks there that it was a restructed building and he needed them to leave.