Donald Trump’s administration has reached a settlement with the family of Ashli Babbitt, who was fatally shot by a Capitol Police officer on January 6, 2021 after joining a mob inside the halls of Congress.
Babbitt, 35, was wrapped in an American flag when a mob smashed through a window leading inside the chamber of the House of Representatives. Babbitt was hoisted up, an officer on the other side fired a single shot, and Babbitt fell to the ground.
A court filing on Friday confirmed a settlement had been reached after the family filed a $30 million wrongful death lawsuit against the government last year. The terms are not yet public.
The death of Babbitt — an Air Force veteran and QAnon proponent who supported Trump’s baseless “stolen” election narrative — emerged as a martyr-like figure among the president’s supporters, while Trump has repeatedly referred to Babbitt as a “patriot.”
Last month, he said he would “look into” whether the government should settle with her family.
“I’m a big fan of Ashli Babbitt, OK, and Ashli Babbitt was a really good person who was a big MAGA fan, Trump fan, and she was innocently standing there — they even say, trying to sort of hold back the crowd,” he told Newsmax last month.
“And a man did something unthinkable to her when he shot her, and I think it’s a disgrace,” he said. “I’m going to look into that.”
Trump also pledged he would “look at” at the government’s decision to drop a case against Michael Byrd, the Capitol Police lieutenant who shot Babbitt. In April 2021, the Department of Justice announced prosecutors were not pursuing criminal charges against Byrd after determining that the shooting was lawful.
“I think it’s a disgrace,” he told Newsmax. “I’m going to look at that too. His reputation was — I won’t even say. Let’s find out about his reputation, OK? We’re going to find out.”
Her family’s lawsuit claims she “her hands were up in the air, empty, and in plain view of Lt. Byrd and other officers in the lobby.”
“Ashli posed no threat to the safety of anyone,” according to the complaint.
The family’s federal lawsuit was initially filed in California and transferred to Washington, D.C., last year, when the Justice Department under the Biden administration defended the government’s position.
This is a developing story
