Capitol Cop Dies Of Injuries Sustained During Trump Riot, Homicide Investigation Launched

Photo via U.S. Capitol Police

January 8, 2021, 11:09 am

Officer Brian D. Sicknick of the Capitol police has died after being taken off of life support at a nearby hospital following the pro-Trump assault on congress. Sicknick was reportedly injured during a physical altercation with Trump supporters and collapsed after he made it back to his division. Multiple reports have stated that he was hit with a fire extinguisher.

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The death is now being investigated as a homicide.

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The death of Brian D. Sicknick, the US Capitol Police Officer reportedly bludgeoned with a fire extinguisher during the siege of the Capitol, will be investigated as a homicide. https://t.co/0N7vWkThbd

— Ryan Lizza (@RyanLizza) January 8, 2021

Sicknick marks the fifth death to result from the storming of the Capitol on Wednesday, incited by Donald Trump and the relentless pushing of his electoral fraud conspiracy theory in an attempt to maintain his power. Four civilians who entered the Capitol died, one from a gunshot wound and three others from unspecified medical emergencies.

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On Thursday night, police lined the street in front of the Capitol with their cars, lights flashing but silent, and stood together to honor their fellow officer.

Reports Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick was hit with a fire extinguisher by rioter. After Trump said: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol…and we’re probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them. Because you’ll never take back our country with weakness.” https://t.co/NAfu9ANKhk

— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) January 8, 2021

Friday morning, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ordered the Capitol flags to be flown at half-mast.

“The sacrifice of Officer Sicknick reminds us of our obligation to those we serve: to protect our country from all threats foreign and domestic,” she said.

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Sicknick was 42 and had been with the Capitol police for 12 years, having recently transferred to the First Responder’s Unit. This will be the first fatality of a Capitol officer on duty since 2014.

Many of the rioters are now finding themselves under investigation after being filmed and photographed inside the Capitol on Wednesday. This includes a Republican delegate from West Virginia, Derrick Evans, who live-streamed his own crimes on Facebook.

Though the rioters at the Capitol seemed to be largely allowed by police to enter the building after they were met with completely insufficient resistance from the department, they still seemed surprised that any cops stood in their way. Increased fighting between far-right groups and police have soured the “stop the steal” crowd on cops after years of saying “back the blue” as long as the blue was brutalizing Black Lives Matter protesters.

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So far, at least 82 people have been arrested in connection to the attack on the Capitol, including the man who was photographed with his foot up on Nancy Pelosi’s desk. Whoever is found responsible for the death of Officer Sicknick can expect to be made an example.

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*First Published: January 8, 2021, 11:09 am