Capitol Police Officer died of natural causes, not in riot

WASHINGTON – Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick suffered two strokes and died of natural causes a day after the Jan. 6 protests at the Capitol, the District of Columbia’s chief medical examiner has ruled.

The ruling, released Monday, will make it difficult for prosecutors to pursue homicide charges in the officer’s death.

In an interview with The Washington Post, Francisco Diaz, the medical examiner, said the autopsy found no evidence that the 42-year-old officer suffered an allergic reaction to chemical irritants. Diaz also said there was no evidence of internal or external injuries.

Diaz said Sicknick suffered two strokes at the base of the brain stem caused by a clot in an artery that supplies blood to that area of the body. Diaz said he could not comment on whether Sicknick had a preexisting medical condition, citing privacy laws.

In the days after the riot, police, the media and a Justice Department official attributed Sicknick’s death to the riot.

Democratic House managers arguing for President Donald Trump’s impeachment said Sicknick was killed by rioters, citing a false New York Times story that said Sicknick had been struck with a fire extinguisher. The Times later changed the story, saying there was no evidence of blunt-force trauma.

Exactly what caused Sicknick’s death has remained unclear for more than 14 weeks.

Efforts to reach Sicknick’s family on Monday were not successful, and Capitol Police said in a statement that the family had asked for privacy.

The Capitol Police said in its statement that the ruling “does not change the fact Officer Brian Sicknick died in the line of duty, courageously defending Congress and the Capitol.” The agency said it will “never forget Officer Sicknick’s bravery, nor the bravery of any officer on January 6, who risked their lives to defend our democracy.”

Christopher Macchiaroli, a former federal prosecutor who handled violent-crime cases before grand juries in D.C. Superior Court and U.S. District Court, said a ruling of a death by natural causes “does make it more difficult to bring a homicide prosecution.”

Macchiaroli said additional evidence of some conduct by rioters could emerge independently, which prosecutors could argue contributed to the strokes. But he said “any defense attorney . . . would use the medical examiner’s conclusions as clear-cut evidence of reasonable doubt.”

In explaining the decision, the medical examiner’s office provided an updated timeline leading to Sicknick’s death. A statement says Sicknick collapsed 7 hours and 40 minutes after he was sprayed, then died nearly 24 hours after that.

In early February, Sicknick, who grew up in South River, N.J., was honored at the U.S. Capitol. His remains were interred at Arlington National Cemetery.

His death is being investigated by D.C. police, who handle all deaths in the city; the Capitol Police; and the FBI.

Jeffrey Rosen, acting U.S. attorney general at the time, said in a Jan. 8 statement that Sicknick died of “the injuries he suffered defending the U.S. Capitol.” He promised that local and federal authorities would “spare no resources in investigating and holding accountable those responsible.”

The Capitol Police said in a statement soon after the riot that Sicknick “was injured while physically engaging with protesters.”

Christopher Geldart, D.C.’s acting deputy mayor for public safety, said Monday that the medical examiner’s office “took the appropriate amount of time to evaluate all the evidence” in Sicknick’s death, which he said including reviewing videos, statements from officers and the results of toxicology screens.

Geldart said Diaz “felt he was able to make this call in good conscience.”

In March, two men – Julian Elie Khater, 32, of Pennsylvania, and George Pierre Tanios, 39, of West Virginia – were accused of assaulting Sicknick with chemical spray during the riot.

At the time of the arrests, the autopsy had not been completed. Tanios’s attorney, Beth Gross with the federal public defender service, declined to comment on the ruling. Attorneys for Khater on Monday did not respond to inquiries.

In a statement after Sicknick died, his family said, “Brian is a hero and that is what we would like people to remember.”