Officer’s death intensifies US Capitol siege questions
WASHINGTON — A police officer has died from injuries suffered as President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol, a violent siege that is forcing hard questions about the defeated president’s remaining days in office and the ability of the Capitol Police to secure the area.
The U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement that Officer Brian Sicknick was injured “while physically engaging with protesters” during the Wednesday riot. He is the fifth person to die because of the Capitol protest and violence.
During the struggle at the Capitol, Sicknick, 42, was hit in the head with a fire extinguisher, two law enforcement officials said. The officials could not discuss the ongoing investigation publicly and spoke to Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Sicknick had returned to his division office after the incident and collapsed, the Capitol Police statement said. He was taken to a local hospital where he died late Thursday.
His family said in a statement Friday that Sicknick wanted to be a police officer his entire life. He served in the New Jersey Air National Guard before joining the Capitol Police in 2008.
“Many details regarding Wednesday’s events and the direct causes of Brian’s injuries remain unknown, and our family asks the public and the press to respect our wishes in not making Brian’s passing a political issue,” the family said.
Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., said in a statement that news of the police officer’s death was “gut-wrenching,” adding, “None of this should have happened.”
Trump did not personally comment on the officer’s death, but a White House spokesman said the death of any police officer in the line of duty is “a solemn reminder that they run toward danger to maintain peace.” Trump and the entire administration “extend our prayers to Officer Brian Sicknick’s family as we all grieve the loss of this American hero,” spokesman Judd Deere said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said those responsible for Sicknick’s death “must be brought to justice.”
“The violent and deadly act of insurrection targeting the Capitol, our temple of American democracy, and its workers was a profound tragedy and stain on our nation’s history,” Pelosi said Friday. She ordered flags at the Capitol lowered to halfstaff in Sicknick’s honor.
On Friday, the FBI arrested an Arkansas man who was photographed sitting at a desk in Pelosi’s office, authorities announced.
Richard Barnett was arrested in Little Rock, according to Ken Kohl, the top deputy federal prosecutor in Washington.
Kohl said Barnett was charged for entering Pelosi’s office, where he “left a note and removed some of the speaker’s mail.” Barnett, 60, faces three federal charges: knowingly entering or remaining in restricted grounds without authority; violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds; and theft of public property or records. If convicted, he faces up to a year in federal prison.
He was being held in the Washington County Jail in Arkansas. Jail records did not list an attorney for him.
Authorities said in court documents that they were able to identify Barnett in part through photographs taken by news media when he was inside the building. Authorities also used video surveillance from inside the Capitol and a video interview Barnett gave to a New York Times reporter in which he said, “I didn’t steal (an envelope) . ... I put a quarter on her desk, even though she ain’t (expletive) worth it.”
Barnett is from Gravette in northwest Arkansas. He has identified himself on social media as a Trump supporter and gun rights advocate.