Rep. Jamaal Bowman to be charged with falsely pulling fire alarm in Capitol Hill office building

Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman has been charged with falsely pulling a fire alarm in a Capitol Hill office building before a last-minute vote to fund the government in September.

A spokesperson for the Attorney General for the District of Columbia said Bowman will plead guilty. He has also agreed to pay a $1,000 fine — the maximum for the misdemeanor charge — and write an apology letter.

“Congressman Bowman was treated like anyone else who violates the law in the District of Columbia,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “Based on the evidence presented by Capitol Police, we charged the only crime that we have jurisdiction to prosecute.”

Bowman has been ordered to appear in D.C. Superior Court on Thursday morning for his arraignment on the single misdemeanor charge. Falsely pulling a fire alarm in D.C. is a misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of six months imprisonment and a fine.

Bowman told reporters he would pay the fine and the charges could be dropped after three months if he abides by the conditions of his probation. He called the incident a “lapse in judgment.”