Officer gets court date

An arraignment date has been set for the U.S. Capitol Police officer accused of setting fire in a Senate office building.

Karen Emory, 36, will be arraigned on Dec. 17 before U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo Urbina, according to a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney’s office, which is handling the case. Emory faces up to one year in jail on charges stemming from a fire inside the women’s restroom in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Nov. 2.

{mosads}Emory is charged with willfully injuring or committing depredation against property of the U.S. The damaged property included “toilet roll dispensers and toilet tissue,” according to the indictment.

The Nov. 2 fire followed a series of suspicious fires in Senate office buildings on the Hill, all of which were quickly extinguished. No injuries have been reported from any of the fires.