Officer cleared in death of Capitol rioter

WASHINGTON • An internal investigation has cleared a U.S. Capitol Police officer of any wrongdoing in the fatal shooting of Ashli Babbitt during the siege of the Capitol on Jan. 6, the department announced Monday.

The Justice Department previously announced that the officer would not face criminal charges in the killing of the 35-year-old California woman, who was shot as she tried to force her way through a set of doors near where some lawmakers were sheltering.

Babbitt, who was the only Capitol rioter fatally shot by police, was praised by former president Donald Trump earlier this month. White supremacists and other farright groups have labelled Babbitt a martyr.

The probe by the U.S. Capitol Police exonerated the officer for his use of force. The department said in a memo outlining the investigation that the officer’s actions were within department policy, which allows deadly force only when an officer reasonably believes they are protecting themselves or others from serious physical harm.

The department said it was not identifying the officer because he and his family “have been the subject of numerous credible and specific threats.”

Babbitt was among a mob of Trump supporters who used a flagpole and other items to batter the barricaded doors to the Speaker’s Lobby, the hall outside the House Chamber.

Multiple cellphone videos captured Babbitt attempting to crawl through the shattered glass pane in one of the doors. The officer, who was standing on the far side of the doors, fired a single shot at her, sending her tumbling backward. Babbitt was hit in the shoulder and later died. Her slaying became a defining moment of the riot.

The Justice Department found in April that there was insufficient evidence to prove Babbitt’s civil rights had been violated and that it was reasonable for the officer to believe he was firing in self-defence or in defence of lawmakers fleeing the House chamber.

Mark E. Schamel, an attorney for the officer, said in April that his client acted appropriately on Jan 6.

“His bravery on Jan. 6 was nothing short of heroic,” Schamel said in a statement. “He stopped the rioters from gaining entry into the Speaker’s Lobby and saved the lives of countless members of Congress and the rioters.”

Babbitt was a supporter of Qanon, an extremist ideology based on false claims.