Noose Found Hanging From Tree At Capitol Hill Church

WASHINGTON, DC — A noose was found hanging from a tree Friday morning at a church in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Washington, D.C.

A D.C. police report said a rope was hung in a tree with a loop at the end — similar to a noose — on the grounds of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church at 301 A Street SE, according to Fox News.

The church’s rector, the Reverend Michele Morgan, said a local choir was getting ready to rehearse in the church’s nave when they discovered the noose around 11 a.m. Friday, DCist reported. The noose was hanging about 10 feet off the ground, attached to a branch of the tallest tree in the church's courtyard, Morgan said.

D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen posted a photo of the noose on Twitter. “A despicable symbol & act of hate,” Allen, who represents Ward 6, said in the tweet.

The MPD is working with church leadership to investigate the incident. “Denounce it loud & clear — hate has no home here,” Allen wrote in his tweet.

After learning about the noose, Morgan said she immediately called Reverend Thomas L. Bowen, director of the Mayor’s Office of Religious Affairs, Lt. David Hong from the Special Liaison Branch of the MPD, and the church's bishop, Mariann Budde.

After police technicians removed the noose from the tree, Morgan and others prayed around the tree, "reconsecrating the space and blessing the tree and the sacred space of our church," Morgan wrote in a message Friday to the St. Mark’s Episcopal Church community.

"That symbol of hatred has no place in our churchyard, in our city, or our country. I know that this symbol causes fear in people's hearts," the reverend said.

Morgan told DCist reporter Elliot C. Williams that St. Mark’s has had two Black Lives Matter banners stolen from the front of the church in recent months. One banner was stolen around the time of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 and another was taken on March 13, DCist reported.

The MPD said in a statement that it is investigating the incident as a possible hate crime. “These types of offenses are taken seriously and are entirely unacceptable,” the department wrote in its statement.

Anyone with information can call the MPD at 202-727-9099 or text anonymously to 50411.