Designer Handbags Dumped Outside Capital One Arena as Inauguration Attendees Face Strict Bag Policy

Louis Vuitton bags among items thrown on the street as last-minute venue change catches guests off guard.

Jon Cherry/Getty Images
Items not allowed in the Capital One Arena, including handbags, are discarded on the street during inauguration ceremonies for President Trump. Jon Cherry/Getty Images

The streets surrounding Capital One Arena at Washington DC were littered with designer handbags as purses were among the items banned from the building for inauguration festivities on Monday — with some attendees opting to part ways with the expensive totes rather than give up a seat at the festivities.

The Louis Vuitton bags, which retail as high as $36,000, were seen being thrown atop piles of discard items near the gates to enter the arena on 9th and G Streets, according to Fox 5 DC’s Stephanie Ramirez, who witnessed them being tossed first hand as people entered to watch a simulcast of the inauguration from the Capitol Rotunda, and a later appearance by President Trump.

Valuables are tossed like trash during the inauguration ceremonies for President Trump. Jon Cherry/Getty Images

“Tons of bags are being ditched to get through screening and into @CapitalOneArena to view the 60th Presidential Inauguration,” the reporter wrote in a post on X along with video from the scene.

The Capital One Arena has had a long-standing policy of which bags are not allowed into the venue.

The strict bag policy at Capital One Arena, which was enacted two years ago, bans all bags larger than five-by-seven inches, all backpacks, briefcases, and large purses with the only exemption being a medical or parenting bag.

But given that the Inauguration festivities were moved indoors at the last minute, many attendees were unaware of the rules.


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