What we want — indeed, what we demand for ourselves and our fellow officers — is accountability for the events of Jan. 6. We are grateful to the Justice Department for undertaking scores of criminal prosecutions of the insurrectionists who attacked the Capitol and inflicted injuries on numerous law enforcement officers. And while it is disturbing to see so many rioters receiving light sentences, we are heartened that some judges are going beyond prosecutors’ sentencing recommendations.

But the criminal justice process will not tell the complete story of what happened that day, and why. For that we must rely on the bipartisan House select committee, before which both of us testified in July. It will not be enough to identify and punish only those who physically attacked the Capitol and tried to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power. The American people deserve to know who played any role in planning or financing the events that led to the attack, who failed to take timely action to warn of and prepare for the impending violence, and who failed or refused to send timely reinforcements to defend the Capitol and come to the aid of the officers bearing the brunt of the attack. That’s why it’s critical for the select committee to have unimpeded access to all the information it requires to develop a comprehensive factual record, and to produce a definitive investigative report.