The unnamed Capitol police officer who killed Ashli Babbit during the Capitol riot won’t face any charges:
NBC NEWS – Investigators have determined the Capitol Police officer who shot and killed Ashli Babbitt during the U.S. Capitol riot should not be charged with any crimes, a law enforcement source familiar with the investigation told NBC News.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that police investigators have recommended the officer not be charged, although the U.S. Attorney’s Office will make the final decision on the matter.
Babbitt, a 35-year-old Air Force veteran and ardent supporter of former President Donald Trump, was shot during the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol.
The pro-Trump rioters wanted to stop the certification of President Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 presidential election and were threatening members of Congress and then-Vice President Mike Pence, who were evacuated as the mob made its way closer to and eventually inside the Capitol Building.
Videos show rioters who made it into the building breaking glass on doors near the House Chamber, which were blocked haphazardly from the inside with chairs in an attempt to prevent the mob from entering. As Babbitt tried to climb through the shattered glass, she was fatally shot by a Capitol Police officer who fired at her once.
The officer, who has not been identified by Capitol Police or investigators, “used clear appropriate use of force. It’s not even a close call,” said the officer’s lawyer, Mark E. Schamel.
The broken doors and a few officers were the only things separating the mob from members of Congress, Schamel stressed. “I think it’s his heroism and his restraint that saved lives,” Schamel told NBC News.
I completely agree with this assessment. I know some of you will disagree with me, but the officer was simply protecting the people inside the House chamber and from his perspective, she was part of an unruly mob trying to get in to harm those people.
Witness testimony from the incident indicated that the officer had warned Babbit and the others to desist from trying to get into the House chamber. I don’t know whether she didn’t hear him or just didn’t care, but she persisted and ended up with a fatal gunshot wound.
It was a tragedy, but I can in now way find fault with this officer and am glad he’s not being charged.
ARTICLE SOURCE: newsthud.com
