The bizarre footage of Jamaal Bowman pulling the fire alarm during votes to prevent a government shutdown has been released.
The new clip shows the New York Democratic representative taking down a red caution sign and taking down another warning sign in the incident that led to criminal charges.
The video obtained by NY1 shows Bowman insisting he rushed to get to a vote as he approached double doors in the Cannon House Office Building in September.
The 47-year-old picks up one of the red signs, tries to open the left door and then turns to activate the fire alarm.
The ‘Squad’ member has insisted he did not intend to set off the fire alarm, but claimed he thought doing so would open a door.
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Full footage of the moment Jamaal Bowman pulled the fire alarm during votes to prevent a government shutdown has been released
Bizarre new clip shows New York’s Democratic representative tearing down a red caution sign and taking down another in the incident that led to criminal charges
Representative Jamaal Bowman has been criminally charged with one misdemeanor count for pulling the fire alarm during a vote in the House of Representatives
But the release of the video has raised questions about what he was trying to do.
From the footage, it appears he was not trying to open the door when he pulled the alarm.
Bowman appeared briefly in DC Superior Court on Thursday morning and pleaded guilty.
Under an agreement with prosecutors, Bowman will have to pay a $1,000 fine and write an apology to the Capitol Police.
The charge was “intentionally and knowingly causing a false fire alarm, in violation of the DC Code,” and the New York Democrat was ordered to appear in court for arraignment on Thursday.
He has said he will pay a $1,000 fine and issue a formal apology to the Capitol Police to have the charges dropped.
“I am responsible for activating a fire alarm, I will pay the fine imposed and I look forward to these charges ultimately being dropped,” he said in a statement.
Capitol Police have now completed their investigation into the September 30 incident, which Bowman’s office described as a mistake.
‘We have completed our investigation. “Our officers collected all evidence, packaged it and sent the entire case and charges to prosecutors for consideration,” they said in a statement.
Bowman, a former school principal, said he pulled the alarm while rushing to open a door to get to a vote.
But the incident came as Democrats tried to delay a vote on a bill to extend the government funding deadline and prevent a government shutdown.
Obtained by @NY1: Images of Rep. Bowman pulling the fire alarm at the Cannon House Office Building on September 30.
Bowman pleaded guilty in court this morning to “intentionally or knowingly giving a false fire alarm” in DC. pic.twitter.com/HaBBAaLQqI
— Kevin Frey (@KevinFreyTV) October 26, 2023
Democrat Jamal Bowman says claims that he purposefully pulled a fire alarm to disrupt Republicans in the House of Representatives as they debated an emergency bill to prevent a government shutdown are “BS.”
“I thought the alarm was going to open the door,” Bowman told reporters about the incident.
“I was rushing to vote, trying to get to a door.”
“(Bowman) generated a fire alarm in Cannon this morning,” a spokesperson for the Congressional Administration Committee said. “An investigation is underway into why it was withdrawn.”
Bowman called the idea that he pulled the fire alarm to delay a vote “complete BS.”
Rep. Bryan Steil, chairman of the House Administration Committee, said of the accusation: “Bowman’s apology does not pass the sniff test. After pulling the fire alarm, Representative Bowman fled the scene, passed multiple Capitol Police officers and had every opportunity to notify USCP of his mistake.”
Bowman’s stunt infuriated Republicans, with Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., drafting a resolution to expel him.
But the House fallout for Bowman was derailed by the impeachment of Kevin McCarthy and the three-week standoff to find a speaker that followed.